I 







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■En^^JjfH.B-Uaa.'^- 



GEN ITLy S SL S S. GKANI. US A 



ubiished Isr E B Ireat & C9 eS* BroaaroT. ^JewToit 



THE LIFE 



ULYSSES S. G-EANT, 



GENERAL-IN-CHIEF U. S. A., 



BY 

HON. J. T. HEADLEY, 

AUTHOR OF " WASHINGTON AND HIS GENERALS," " NAPOLEON AND HIS 

MARSHALS," " SACRED MOUNTAINS," " FARRAGUT AND OUR 

NATAL COMMANDERS," ETC., ETC. 

ILLUSTRATED. 



SOLD BY SUBSCRIPTION. 



NEW YORK: 



E. B. TREAT & CO., PUBLISHERS, 654 BROADWAY. 

C. W. LILLET, CHICAGO, ILL. ; A. L. TALCOTT, PITTSBURG, PA. ; 

E. E. SHEAR, SAN FRANCISCO, C^VL.; A. H. HUBBARD, 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



1868. 







. ■'4-S 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1868, by 
J. T. HEADLEY, 
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the 
Southern District of New York. •»» 



3 y^h \ 



THE TROW & SMITH 

BOOK MANVFACTVRINa COMPANY, 

46, 4S, 50 Greene Street, N. Y. 



*• < < 



\ \ 



PREFACE. 



In a former work, composed of biographical 
sketches of the distinguished generals that shared 
the fortunes and the triumphs of General Grant, 
we gave a brief outline of the military history of 
the latter. The object of the present work is to 
fill up that outline, and present him not merely 
as a great military leader, but by a careful col- 
lection and faithful narration of the facts and 
events that go to make up his history, from his 
boyhood to the present hour, furnish to the reader 
the materials for obtaining a correct estimate of 
his character as a man. 

Immediately after the war, things were in that 
state of chaos that it was impossible to get hold 
of those details so necessary to the proper under- 
standing of this. These have since come to light, 
which enables the biographer not only to give his 



IV PREFACE. 

complete history, so far as it illustrates his great 
qualities, but also to explain much that was 
hitherto wrapt in obscurity. This is especially 
true of his early struggles in the West, against 
secret persecutions and open hostility. In his 
varied fortunes whilst serving under Halleck, 
much that is new and strange has been learned 
which not only reveals Grant in a more attrac- 
tive light than even his great deeds, but also the 
mysterious path by which Providence finally led 
him to the exalted height which he so much 
adorns. 

Such a complete history of him is desirable, 
not only because of the prominent place he holds 
in our military annals and national history, 
but because of the important position he at 
present occupies in the civil afi"airs of the re- 
public. 

If he is destined in these turbulent times to 
take the helm of the government, it is of vital 
consequence that the people should know his 
character as illustrated by his acts, other than as 
a victorious general. 

We believe a calm perusal of the following 
work will enable a just man to form correct con- 
clusions, and that he will rise from it convinced 



PBEFACE. 



that a more unselfish, patriotic, or purer man 
was never entrusted with power. 

In reference to Grant's military life West, we 
wish to acknowledge our great obligations to Col. 
Badeau, who, as a member of the General's staff, 
had access to his private papers, and hence was 
able to reveal what was before unknown, or only 
conjectured. 



ILLUSTRATIONS 



FINELY EXECUTED ON STEEL, 



From Photographs and Original Designs. 



PoETEAiT OF GENERAL U. S. Gbant (from a late Photograph, 

Engraved by H. B. Ilall Frontispiece 

Map of Geneeal Geant's Vioksbubg Campaign, Engraved 

by Eoberts, » 1(> 

BiETH-PLACE OF Genebal U. S. Geant, Designed by Perkins, 

Engraved by Robins 40 

VioTOEious Maeoh of Gen'l Geant's Aemt into Eiohmond, 

Designed by Momberger, Engraved by A. Robins 200 

Genebal Geant's Aemy's "Welcome Home {Grand Review 
at Washington)^ Designed by A. L. Rawson, Engraved 
by A. Robins 357 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Childhood of Great Men — Influence of Circumstances — How 
Generals are made— Grant's Ancestry — Nativity — ^Early Life 
— Apt at Figures— Examined by a Phrenologist— His love for 
Horses — Early management of them — Rides a Circus-Pony — 
Sent alone on business to Kentucky— Ingenuity in loading 
heavy timber — Dissatisfied with his position — Resolves to go to 
West Point 17 

CHAPTER II. 

Enters West Point — How his Name became changed— Application 
to his Studies — His steady Progress — Distinguished for his 
Horsemanship — Graduates — Brevetted Second Lieutenant — 
Ordered West— Serves under Taylor on the Rio Grande— Battles 
of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Joins Scott at Vera 
Cruz — Made Quartermaster and serves also on the Staff — Dis- 
tinguishes himself at Molino del Rey and Chapultepec — Com- 
plimented for his gallantry — West Point OflScers turn Gunners — 
Value of their early training in the Field — Returns home and 
Marries — Stationed at Detroit and Sackett's Harbor — Sent to 
California — to Oregon — Made Captain — Resigns his Commis- 
sion — Settles on a Farm near St. Louis — Sells Wood — Anec- 
dotes — Turns Collector — Poor Success — Joins his Father in the 
Leather business — Breaking out of the War — West Point vin- 
dicated 27 

CHAPTER III. 

His Politics — Raises a Company and takes it to Springfield — He 
offers his services to the Government — His letter unanswered 
— ^Assists Governor Yates in organizing the troops — Made Col- 



Vin CONTENTS. 

onel of the 21st Eegiment — Endeavors to get on McOlellaa's 
staff — Serves in Missouri — Made Brigadier-General — Amusing 
Anecdote of him — Makes Cairo his Headquarters — Occupies 
Paducah — Proclamation to the People — Correspondence with 
General Polk — Battle of Belmont — His congratulatory Order — 
Letter to his Father, giving an account of the Action — The 
Cairo Expedition — Order respecting it — Eetaliatory Order — 
Proposes to Halleck to seize Fort Henry — Rude treatment by 
the latter 41 

CHAPTER IV. 

Importance of their Capture — Grant commands the land forces in 
the Expedition against them — Fort Henry taken by Admiral 
Foote — Grant's advance against Fort Donelson — Eepulse of 
Foote — Investment of the place — Description of its defences — 
Desperate Assault of Pillow — The Battle— Arrival of Grant on 
the Field — His sublime determination — Assault of the enemy's 
works — Smith's Success — The Night-Consultation of the Rebel 
Officers — Escape of Pillow and Floyd — Correspondence between 
Grant and Buckner — The Surrender — Grant breakfasts with 
the Rebel General — Result of the Victory — Enthusiasm of the 
People — Congratulatory Order to the Troops — Fall of Nash- 
ville — Consternation and Flight of the People — Violence of the 
Mob — Columbus Flanked 63 

CHAPTER V. 

Halleck's Neglect — His unjust and abusive Despatch to "Wash- 
ington — Failure of his Attempt to injure him with the Gov- 
ernment — Grant ordered to Fort Henry — Halleck accuses 
him of Acting Unbecoming an Officer — Puts Smith in his Place 
at the head of the Army of the Tennessee — Continues his Per- 
secutions — Noble Conduct of Grant — Denies the Charges made 
against him — Asks to be relieved from Command till his Con- 
duct can be investigated — Sudden Change in Halleck's Treat- 
ment — Attempts to vindicate his Conduct— His Duplicity — 
Unsuspected by Grant — General Morgan treated in a similar 
manner— Magnanimity of Grant and Smith — Rumors of Grant's 
Arrest 83 



CONTENTS. IX 

CHAPTER VI. 

Position of the Army on the Tennessee — Located at Pittsburgh 
Landing and Savannah — Eeasons for it — Grant restored to his 
command, and takes up his Headquarters at Savannah — Buell 
ordered to join him with forty thousand men — Grant forbidden 
to give battle — Concentration of the Enemy at Corinth — Threat- 
ening Demonstrations of the Enemy— Accident to Grant — 
Fierce and unexpected onset of the Enemy — The Battle — Sur- 
render of Prentiss— Gallantry of Sherman — Arrival of Grant 
on the Battle Field — His orders to Nelson and Wallace to push 
forward to his aid — They fail to arrive — The Army driven back 
to the Eiver — Arrival of Buell — The Gunboats — Night — A 
Storm — Buell's army got into position — Grant sleeps on the 
field— The Second Day's Battle— Grant heads a charge — The 
Victory — Correspondence with Beauregard — Causes of First 
Day's Defeat — Defence of Grant — Outcry against him .... 97 

CHAPTER VII. 

Halleck takes Chief Command — Again disgraces Grant — Uncom- 
plaining Conduct of the latter — Abused by Correspondents of 
the Press — His calm Reply to one — His quiet, dignified 
Behavior — Offers Halleck Good Advice — Insulted for it — His 
Sharp Retort — Evacuation of Corinth — An Excellent Llus- 
tration of Halleck's Strategy— Halleck called to "Washing- 
ton — Last Attempt to disgrace Grant — The latter makes 
Corinth his Headquarters — Order respecting Fugitive Slaves 
— Severe Order to the People of Memphis — Receives a threat- 
ening Letter— Battle of luka— Of Corinth— Sends Sherman to 
Attempt the Capture of Vicksburg — Causes of his Failure — 
Plans his great Expedition against the Stronghold 116 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Situation of Vicksburg — Difficulty of reaching it — Attempt to get 
below it by a Canal — Sickliness of the Camp— Visit of one of 
the Sanitary Commission— Aided by Grant — His Solicitude for 
the Comfort of the Soldiers— A Flood— Failure of the Canal— 
The Red River Route — Abandoned — Attempt on the east Side 



X CONTENTS. 

of the River, by Moon Lake — Narrative of the Expedition sent 
through it — Its Abandonment — A Fourth Attempt by Steele's 
Bayou — Its Difficulties — Porter's Account of it — Its Abandon- 
ment 128 

CHAPTER IX. 

Grant resolves to run the Batteries with his Fleet — Opposed by his 
Officers — Boldness of the Resolution — Desperate Character of 
his Plan — Attempt to remove him — Cooperation with Banks — 
The Army marches below Vicksburg — Running the Batteries — 
A thrilling Spectacle — Success — Grand Gulf attacked — Re- 
pulse — Its Batteries run — Landing at Bruinsburgh — ^Energy 
and Activity of Grant — Superintends every thing — Strikes In- 
land — Battle of Port Gibson — Grant assumes Command — The 
Victory — Grand Gulf Evacuated — Entered by Grant 145 

CHAPTER X. 

A Perilous Resolve — Cuts loose from his Base — Untiring Activity 
— Urgent Orders — Sherman's Arrival — His Astonishment — 
Grant Marches for Jackson — Address to his Troops — His little 
Son accompanies him — Despatch to Halleck — McPherson de- 
feats Johnston — Jackson evacuated — Grant's Son the first to 
enter it — Sherman left to destroy Public Property — The Army 
marches back toward Vicksburg — Johnston outmarched — Bat- 
tle of Champion's Hill — Grant with his Boy under Fire — 
" The Hill of Death "—Battle of Black River— Before Vicks- 
burg — Sherman's Opinion of the Campaign — Results of it — 
Its Resemblance to Napoleon's Italian Campaign 164 

CHAPTER XI. 

Description of the Enemy's "Works — First Assault — Bombardment 
of the City by Porter — Second Assault — Terrific Scene — Hero- 
ism of the Troops — Gallant Deed of Joseph Griffith — The Chi- 
cago Battery — Mistake of McClernand — Grant deceived by it, 
and orders the Assault renewed — Its Failure — Our Loss — 



CONTENTS. XI 

Grant's Eeasons for making the Assault — Grant resolves on a 
regular Siege — Pemberton asks for a Suspension of Hostilities 
— Burial of the dead 189 

CHAPTER XII. 

Perilous Position of the Army — Want of competent Engineers — 
Labor of Grant — Silence of the Enemy — Wooden Mortars — 
Progress of the Siege — Famine in the City — Distress of the In- 
habitants—They hide in Caves — Explosion of a Mine — Despe- 
rate Fighting— The "Death Hole"— Day fixed for the final 
Assault — Pemberton sees his Condition to be hopeless 199 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Propositions of Pembertoa — Interview between him and Grant — 
Impressive Scene — Haughty Bearing of the former — Terms 
Agreed upon — The Eebel Soldiers stack their Arms — Interview 
between Grant and Pemberton — Paidenejs of the Latter and his 
Ofiicers — Grant enters the City in Triumph — Interview between 
him and Porter— The Soldiers Celebrate the Fourth of 
July — Pemberton's Reasons for Surrendering on the Fourth — 
Grant's Despatch to the Government — Parole and Departure 
of the Prisoners — Rebuke of Halleck — Correspondence with 
Banks — The President's Letter — Sherman sent back to Fight 
Johnston — Summing up of the Campaign 208 

CHAPTER XIV. 

Employment of Negro Troops — Grant's Views respecting it — 
Threatens to retaliate if they are abused when captured — Op- 
posed to opening Trade with the South — Proposes an Ex- 
pedition against Mobile — His Application rejected — Protects 
his Soldiers against the Extortion of Steamboat Captains — Wife 
visits him — Her enthusiastic Reception in St. Louis— Public 
Dinner at Memphis — Thrown from his Horse at New Orleans 
and laid up — Long Confinement — Ordered to reinforce Rose- 
crans — Leaves Vicksburg — Placed over all the Troops in the 
Mississippi Valley— Interview with the Secretary of War. . 227 



Xll CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XV. 

Grant's Despatch to Thomas — Puts him in the place of Rosecrans 
— Starts for Chattanooga — Has to be carried over rough 
places — Gloomy Entrance into Chattanooga — Positions of the 
two Armies — Opening up the Channel for Supplies — Hazen's 
Expedition — Seizure of Lookout Valley by Hooker — Burnsido 
threatened at Knoxville — Sherman hurried forward — Grant 
resolves to attack the Enemy — Postponement — His Anxiety for 
Burnside — Despatches to him — His great Anxiety 2-il 

CHAPTER XVI. 

Bridges carried away — Anxiety and Restlessness of Grant — Recon- 
noisances and advance of Thomas — Sherman makes a lodg- 
ment on Missionary Ridge — Hooker carries Lookout Mountain — 
Battle above the clouds — A tlirilling spectacle — Night before 
the Battle — Sherman's attack — Hooker's delay — Grant's anxie- 
ty — Assault of the Mountain — Heroism of the Troops — Grant 
and Thomas — The victory — The pursuit — Hooker attacks by 
moonlight — Grant's despatch to Halleck — Sherman sent to re- 
lieve Burnside — Review of the Campaign and Battle — Letter 
from the President 256 

CHAPTER XVII. 

Grant again Proposes to capture Mobile — His views Opposed — 
His Congratulatory Order to his Troops — Congress orders a 
Medal struck for him — He wishes to carry on a Winter Cam- 
paign, but is unable — Sends Sherman on a raid into Mississippi 
— A Public Dinner given hira in Louisville — His Political Views 
—Made Lieut.-General, and ordered to "Washington — Inter- 
esting Correspondence between him and Sherman — His Recep- 
tion at Washington — His Commission presented him by the 
President — Grandeur of his Position — Hurries up Banks- 
Maturing of his Plans 277 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

The way to a stable Peace — Grant on the Erroneous Manner in 
which the War had been carried on — The right Plan of Action 



CONTENTS. Xiii 

—View of the Condition— Forces in the Field— Sketch of 
Grant's Plan of Campaign— Instructions to Sherman— Instruc- 
tions to Butler— To Meade— Array of the Potomac— Its Koute 
decided upon— Movement delayed by muddy Eoads— Strange 
Confidence of the South— Not shared by Lee, who orders a 
day of Humiliation and Prayer— His Preparations— Numerical 
Strength of the two Armies 292 

CHAPTER XIX. 

The March begun— The Eapidan crossed— Lee's Flank turned- 
He determines to attack Grant in the Wilderness— A sagacious 
Move— First Day's Battle of the Wilderness— Arrival of Long- 
street and Burnside— Swift Marching— Second Day's Battle- 
Third Day— Headquarters— Grant attempts to move around 
Lee's Left to Spottsylvania— The Night-March— The Enemy 
arrive first— Grand Assault of the Enemy's Works— Gallant 
Charge of Hancock— A Lull— A third Attempt to get between 
Lee and Richmond— It Fails— Last Effort to reach Eichmond 
from the North— Battle of Cold Harbor— Change of Base to 
the James Eiver— Attempt to capture Petersburg 302 

CHAPTER XX. 

The Overland and Peninsula Eoutes considered— Seasons against 
the Former— " Continuous Hammering"- Grant charged with 
having Contempt for all Manoeuvres— The Charge disproved— 
Distinguished for his Skilful Manoeuvres— Compared to Napo- 
leon—Not to blame for the Slaughter in the Wilderness, or the 
Error at Cold Harbor— Gloomy Eetrospect— Failure of Siegel 
and Butler to do their Part— Eeason of the great Disparity in 
the Losses of the two Armies , 321 

CHAPTER XXI. 

Disheartening aspect of affairs— Importance of Petersburg— Hun- 
ter succeeds Siegel— Wilson's raid— Movement north of the 
James Eiver— Explosion of a Mine— Defeat of Hunter— Inva- 
sion of Early-Despondency— Grant's letter to Washburn- 
Appoints Sheridan Commander of all the Forces around Wash- 



XIV CONTENTS. 

ington and in the Middle Department — Cliecks Sheridan — 
Finally, bids him " Go in ! " — Effect of Sheridan's Victories — 
Grant attempts to get around Lee's left — Hancock attacked — 
Winter operations — Almost a frightful disaster — Atlanta reach- 
ed — Grant's grief at the death of McPherson — His Letter to the 
Grandmother — Permits Sherman to cut loose from Atlanta — 
His views upon it — Is anxious to have Thomas attack Hood — 
Correspondence — Fort Fisher — Butler's disobedience — Capture 
of the place — Directs Sherman to come to him by sea — Coun- 
termands the order — Schofield ordered East — Stoneman's raid 
— Expedition against Mobile— Directions to Thomas — Con- 
centric movements — Sheridan's raid — Correspondence with 
Lincoln — Interview with him and Sherman — Eesolves to 
move 335 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Attack of Lee— Sheridan's Orders — The Movement Begun — Sheri- 
dan's Orders revoked — Grant changes his Plan and resolves 
" to Finish the Job" — Battle of Five Forks— Storming of the 
Works — The Victory — Evacuation of Kichmond ordered — 
Davis receives the News in Church — Incredulity of the People — 
Scene in the Capital — Terrific Scene in the Streets— Blowing- 
up of the Kebel Iron-clads — Burning of the Bridges and Ware- 
houses — The City takes fire — A maddened Populace — Weitzel 
and Ewell — Their Eegimental Bands— The Morning' — Entering 
the City^The Conflagration continues — The Capitol-square at 
Night 357 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

The Pursuit — Swift Marching — Sheridan's Victory over Ewell — 
Lee cut off from Burkesville— Endeavors to reach Lynchburg — 
Grant's Letter to Sherman — Lee leaves the Highway, and takes 
to the Thickets — Headed off by Sheridan — Grant addresses a 
Note to Lee asking him to surrender — The Reply — Correspon- 
dence — Lee resolves to cut his way through Sheridan's Cav- 
alry — The Attempt abandoned — Lee seeks an Interview with 
Grantr— Description of the Meeting — The Surrender of the Army 
agreed upon— The Surrender— Grant visits Washington— The 



CONTENTS. XV 

President tells liira a Dream — Is sent down to receive the Sur- 
render of Johnston — The Army starts for Home — Grand Review 
in the Capital 368 

CHAPTEH XXV. 

Grant since the "War — ^Keeps clear of Politics — His freedom from 
animosity to the South — His calm and dispassionate judgment 
— Interferes in behalf of Lee — Opposed to the distinctions made 
in the Amnesty Proclamation between Officers of different 
Rank — Also to that based on Property — Opposed to Military 
Government — Intercedes for Rebels asking for Pardon — The 
Presidential Tour — His Reception at the Sanitary Fair in Chi- 
cago — A thrilling spectacle — Welcome at Galena — Prefers 
"Work to Show — Sent South to examine into its Condition — 
Remonstrates against the Removal of Sheridan — Appointed 
Secretary of "War ad interim — Discharges the Duties of the 
Office with signal Ability — His Reticence on Political Questions 
— His Platform of Principles 386 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

Grant's Freedom from Party prejudice — Vacates the War Office — 
Correspondence with the President — Statements of the Mem- 
bers of the Cabinet — Contradictory Statements — Explanation 
of the discrepancy — His course approved — Refuses to sanction 
Hancock's order at New Orleans — His Character — His Courage 
— Power of Concentration — Tenacity — Knowledge of Detail 
— On the Picket Line — Anecdote of him — Skill in handling 
Large Armies — Lincoln's estimate of his Character— McPher- 
son's 398 




THE LAST INLAND EOUTE OF GEN GRANT TO REACH THE REAR OF VICKSBUEG 



LIFE OF GRANT 



CHAPTER I. 

BOYHOOD. 



Childhood of Great Men — Influence of Circumstances — How- 
Generals are made— Grant's Ancestry — Nativity — ^Early Life 
— Apt at Figures— Examined by a Phrenologist— His love for 
Horses — Early management of them — Kides a Circus-Pony — 
Sent alone on business to Kentucky — Ingenuity in loading 
heavy timber — Dissatisfied with his position — Kesolves to go to 
West Point. 

There is always more or less desire to know 
something of the early life of great men, in the 
expectation of finding those traits or qualities of 
character, in boyhood, which afterwards rendered 
them so distinguished. Sometimes the wish is so 
strong to find these early revelations, that every 
floating rumor is caught at, and accepted as true, 
if it goes to establish precocity of genius. Thus, 
the boyhood of Napoleon and Washington has 
been turned into a romance, in the eagerness to 
show how, almost in their infancy, they gave 
indications of their former greatness. 

But the truth is, circumstances make men — 
not that circumstances can make a strong man 



18 LIFE OF GRANT. 

out of a weak one — a wise one out of a fool — 
but that men are educated by circumstances. A 
man of well-balanced character, strong common 
sense, and good mental capacity, is capable of ex- 
panding to meet any of the exigencies of human 
life ; that is, he will grow to his condition, adapt 
himself to the sphere rapidly enlarging around 
him. Washington, for instance, but for the Rev- 
olution, would doubtless have been distinguished 
only as the first man in his county, of excellent 
judgment, and worthy of any position of trust 
or responsibility. But he had the capacity for 
greater things ; and when the momentous strug- 
gle of the colonies was thro^vn upon him, he rose 
to meet the great responsibility. As the war 
advanced, he advanced in military knowledge 
and skill. In short, he was capable of being 
educated by the circumstances and events into 
which he was throAvn. There are great geniuses 
in history that were born such — who seem to be 
endowed with a sort of inspiration that enables 
them to leap to results which others reach only 
by patient labor and slow experience ; but they 
are rare as comets in the solar system. The 
great truth, that but few men are equal, at once, to 
any and all emergencies that may arise, was one 
that our government, at the outset, was slow in 
learning. In ordinary wars, the general that has 
been educated for the very position of trust in 



MISTAKES. 19 

which he finds himself, and shows by his failures 
that he is unequal to it, proves his incapacity, and 
his removal is a matter of imperious necessity. 
But no one in our country had received the 
training requisite to fit him for the wide field of 
operations, and the distracting circumstances pre- 
sented by the awful civil war that was precipi- 
tated upon us. That military leaders should 
blunder, as well as the government, which was 
equally unprepared for it, was inevitable. To re- 
quire, as some did, an immediate change of gov- 
ernment — even going so far as to hint at the re- 
moval of the President — was insanity. We were 
all children, and had, like children, to learn to 
walk, by repeated stumbles. Ignoring this im- 
portant fact, in military matters, made the gov- 
ernment present the spectacle of throwing dice, as 
it were, for a general. One after another was 
sacrificed, and Grant and Sherman narrowly 
escaped the same fate. The latter was removed 
fi:om the Department of Kentucky, as a crazy 
man ; while nothing but the most strenuous efforts 
of a single friend saved the former from disgrace, 
after the battle of Pittsburgh Landing ; yet both 
proved themselves to be eventually the greatest 
captains of the age. 

But though it is true that the child seldom ex- 
hibits any indications of the future greatness to 
which he attains, yet, in many respects, the old 



20 LIFE OF GRANT. 

maxim is true, that "the child is father to the 
man." 

A child of weak and vacillating will never be- 
comes a man of great decision and executive 
force ; nor one who exhibits a total lack of perse- 
verance and energy in every thing he undertakes 
be distinguished for marking out a course, and 
persisting in it, over all obstacles, and amid the 
greatest discouragements. Those quahties of 
character for which Grant is so remarkable, 
he exhibited as a child. He confronted difficul- 
ties with the same dauntless resolution then, that 
he did afterwards. 

His father, still livuig, loves to recall and recount 
the events in the childhood of his distinguished 
son ; hence, there is no public character of mod- 
ern times, of whose early life so much is kno-^vn. 

He is of Scotch descent; and though much 
effort has been made to trace his lineage to Con- 
necticut, we can find very little that is reliable, 
beyond his great-grandfather, who settled in 
"Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, where, in 
in 1794, the father of Ulysses was born, and, five 
years after, emigrated to Ohio — ^then the far west. 
Here he in a few years died, leaving his son, 
eleven years of age, an orphan, and nearly pen- 
niless. There were seven children in all, the old- 
est of which was but twelve years of age when 
the family was broken up. When sixteen years 



HIS BOYHOOD. 21 

old he was apprenticed to his half-brother, in 
Maysville, Kentucky, to learn the tanner s trade, 
and served out his time, and then went back to 
Ohio, and set up in business for himself, at 
Kavenna, Portage county. Compelled by illness, 
after a few years of toil, to abandon his trade, he 
finally settled down agam, for a while, at Point 
Pleasant. He shortly after became acquainted 
with Miss Hannah Simpson, who had emigrated 
from his native county, in Pennsylvania, and 
married her. 

Ulysses, their first child, was born here, on the 
27th day of April, 1822. The mother was a 
Methodist, and trained her child to respect re- 
ligion, to avoid profanity and strife, and to love 
truth, industry, and honesty. The father was 
poor, and Ulysses was early taught to help him, 
on whom a rapidly increasing family pressed hard. 
Thus, at eight years of age, we find him driving 
team for him ; and at ten he was accustomed 
to drive a pair of horses alone from George- 
town, where he lived, forty miles, to Cincinnati, 
and bring back a load. Like many farmer-boys, 
he was very fond of horses, and, though a mere 
lad, showed great skill in managing them, and 
acquired a knack, no one knew how, of breaking 
them to pace. Most of the incidents of his boy- 
hood differ but little from those which make up 
the life of boys of poor parents, whose necessities 



22 LIFE OF GRANT. 

compel them to work instead of play. Some of 
them, however, exhibit those traits which have 
since distinguished him — in fact, have led to his 
success. That tenacity of purpose, which no ob- 
stacles or dangers can shake, was illustrated in the 
persistency with which he once clung to a circus- 
pony that he was induced to mount in the ring. 
The trained little animal could not, with its ut- 
most efforts, shake him off; and the ring-master, 
disappointed to see him succeed, where others 
always failed, let loose a monkey, Avhich sprung 
up behind him and mounted on his shoulders, 
and began to pull his hair. The spectators 
shouted, and the pony struggled still more fran- 
tically to get rid of its rider ; but Ulysses, with 
his face wearing the same imperturbable expres- 
sion it in after-years wore in battle, rode on, until 
pony and ring-master had to give it up. 

That quiet, fixed resolution, which is such a 
marked feature in his character to-day, he pos- 
sessed when a mere lad. His father possessed 
great confidence in his ability to take care of 
himself, and once sent him, when but twelve years 
of age, to Louisville, alone. We give the incident 
in his own language. He says : 

" It was necessary for me to have a deposition taken 
there, to be used in a law-suit in which I was engaged 
in the State of Connecticnt. I had written more than 
once about it to my lawyers, but could not get the 



SENT ON A JOURNEY. 23 

business done. ' I can do it,' said Ulysses. So I sent 
him on the errand alone. Before he started, I gave 
him an open letter that he might show the captain of 
the boat, or any one else, if he should have occasion, 
stating that he was my son, and was going to Louisville 
on my business. Going down, he happened to meet a 
neighbor with whom he was acquainted ; so he had no 
occasion to use the letter. But when he came on board 
a boat, to return, the captain asked him who he was. 
He told him ; but the captain answered, 'I cannot 
take you ; you may be running away.' Ulysses then 
produced my letter, which put every thing right ; and 
the captain not only treated him with great kindness, 
but took so much interest in him as to invite him to go 
as far as Maysville with him, where he had relatives 
living, free of expense. He brought back the deposi- 
tion with him, and that enabled me to succeed in 
making a satisfactory adjustment of mj suit." * 

The father remembers also the following inci- 
dent, of which doubtless similar may be related of 
hundreds of others who never reached any emi- 
nence, yet it has a peculiar interest in the light of 
after events. He says, " I will relate another cir- 
cumstance which I have never mentioned before, 
which you may use as you think proper. He 
was always regarded as extremely apt in figures. 
When he was ten years old a distinguished phre- 
nologist came along and stayed several days in 
the place. He was frequently asked to examine 
heads blindfolded. Among others, Ulysses was 
placed in the chair. The phrenologist felt his 
head for several minutes without saying any 

♦Written for the " Ledger." 



24 LIFE OF GRANT. 

thing ; at length, a noted doctor asked him if the 
boy had a capacity for mathematics. The phre- 
nologist, after some further examination, said, 
' You need not be surprised if you see this boy fill 
the 2^'^(2sidential chair some time.' " * 

Now, whether the opinion of the phrenologist 
was worth any thing or not, or whether it was a 
mere piece of flattery, or a scientific opinion, may 
not, perhaps, be of much consequence ; but one 
thing is certain, if he had not been diff*erent from 
the ordinary class of boys of his age he never 
would have been selected as a subject for public 
examination. This fact alone shows that he was 
a marked lad, possessing certain positive, distinct 
qualities which distinguished him from others. 
If it were not so, the examination of his head 
would have been without significance. Another 
anecdote is told of him when a little older, show- 
ing that great self-reliance which also formed so 
remarkable a trait of his manhood. Sent once to 
the woods with a team to bring some pieces of 
timber, where his father supposed there were work- 
men to do the loading for him, he, on his arrival, 
found no one there. Instead, however, of return- 
ing with the team and reporting the state of af- 
fairs, he immediately set about performing the 
herculean task himself; and unhitching the horses, 
he with their help hauled up the pieces of hewn 

* "The Hero Boy," by Kev. P. 0. Headley. 



DISSATISFIED WITH HIS LOT. 25 

timber on a half-fallen tree, that served as an in- 
clined plane, the ends projecting over. He then 
backed the wagon under them, and hitching a 
chain to the ends, pulled them one after another 
in, and started for home with his load. 

The means for securing that mental discipline 
and culture necessary to fit him for any position 
of eminence were wanting in the little to-wn 
where he resided. His moral training, however, 
was excellent. Though his parents were not the 
old rigid Scotch Covenanters, they had the Scotch 
probity and prudence, and inculcated right prin- 
ciples into the boy, and it is said of him what 
can be said of few lads, that he was never known 
to tell a lie or use a profane word. 

He devoted himself to his father*'s business of 
tanning leather with reluctance, preferring to 
drive a team instead. 

But while he was thus growing a strong, broad- 
shouldered young man in an obscure western vil- 
lage, he was not satisfied with his lot. Besides, 
his father felt that he ought to have the benefit 
of a better education than could be obtained at 
home. It was a subject of much anxious thought 
with him, for he believed that his son had capacity 
for a more important position than that which the 
trade of a tanner would give him. But his means 
were limited — the want of money, which chains so 
many gifted minds to the mere effort to obtain a 
2 



26 LIFE OF GRANT. 

livelihood in the dull routine in which they have 
been brought up, stood sadly in the way of young 
Grant being placed in the more enlarged sphere 
for which he seemed to be fitted. 

There was, however, one way of securing an 
education, and that was by adopting the profes- 
sion of arms and obtaining the appointment of 
Cadet at West Point. Besides, Ulysses had a 
strong inclination for a military life, and so it was 
decided to apply for a situation in the United 
States Military Academy. 

Thus, in the early struggles of this Western 
youth — in the discussion and balancing of various 
plans and projects, fate was silently weaving the 
first threads of that web on whose completion 
hung most important destinies. 



CHAPTER II. 

HIS MILITAKY EDUCATIOIST AND EARLY SERVICE. 

Enters "West Point^— How his Name became changed— Application 
to his Studies — His steady Progress — Distinguished for his 
Horsemanship — Graduates — Brevetted Second Lieutenant — 
Ordered West — Serves under Taylor on the Rio Grande — Battles 
of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Joins Scott at Vera 
Cruz — Made Quartermaster and serves also on the Staff — Dis- 
tinguishes himself at Molino del Rey and Chapultepec — Com- 
plimented for his gallantry — "West Point Officers turn Gunners — • 
Value of their early training in the Field — Returns home and 
Marries — Stationed at Detroit and Sackett's Harbor — Sent to 
California — to Oregon — Made Captain — Resigns his Commis- 
sion — Settles on a Farm near St. Louis — Sells "Wood — Anec- 
dotes — Turns Collector — Poor Success — Joins his Father in the 
Leather business — Breaking out of the "War — West Point vin- 
dicated. 

In accordance with the plan finally adopted, the 
father applied to Mr. Morris, member of the Sen- 
ate from Ohio, to obtain the desired situation for 
his son. But he was unable to assist him, as his 
promise had already been given to another appli- 
cant ; but in stating the fact to Mr. Grant, he in- 
formed him that there was a vacancy in the con- 
gressional district of Mr. Hamer, and advised him 
to apply to him. He did so, and Mr. Hamer at 
once interested himself in the case, and on his ap- 
plication Ulysses received the appointment. Mr. 



28 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Grant had another son named Simpson, the 
mothers family-name, and in some way Mr. Ha- 
mer got the idea that this was the middle name of 
Ulysses ; hence in his application for the appoint- 
ment he gave the name of the applicant as Ulysses 
S. Grant, and it was so entered on the books at 
West Point. Utysses tried several times to have 
it changed, but at length gave it up, and he became 
U. S. Grant. Thus, by mere accident he acquired 
those initials which, according to the conceit of 
this or that person, have been made to stand for 
so many different things: Uncle Sam Grant, 
United States Grant, Unconditional Surrender 
Grant. 

It was a trying position for the awkward, 
rough. Western youth of eighteen to be thrown 
suddenly into the company of a hundred young 
men, many of whom had received the advantages 
of a good education and a wide intercourse with 
the world. He saw at once that he must make up 
for his deficiency by close application. Acquaint- 
ed only with the first rudiments of the difficult 
mathematics he must become master of, ignorant 
of French and drawing, he had to begin at the be- 
ginning. Taking patiently the fagging still per- 
mitted at West Point during the Freshman year, 
to the disgrace of the institution, he applied him- 
self diligently to the arduous work before him. 
His aptitude for mathematics was now of gi'eat 



AT WEST POINT. 29 

service to him, and learning thoroughly what he 
undertook, he made slow but steady progress, and 
soon distanced many who with the same applica- 
tion and energy would have been far in advance of 
him. 

At the close of the first year, after the examina- 
tion, the usual thinning process took place by 
which many were thrown back to go over again 
the studies they so little understood ; but young 
Grant, notwithstanding the difficulties he had 
labored under, took his place with the successful 
ones in the next class. Passing through this year 
in the same studious way, he was made in the 
subsequent class of 1841 sergeant of battalion. 

In the examination of this year more cadets 
were thrown back, and the Western boy found 
himself in a class dwindled dowTi to nearly half 
of its original number. The last year he was 
promoted to the position of officer of cadets, and 
finished his course successfully. Though not, like 
the brilliant McPherson, graduating at the head 
of his class, he stood No. twenty-one, which was 
above the average. 

His acquisitions were of a solid, substantial 
character, but in no one thing did he evince any 
peculiar excellence, except in horsemanship. He 
was a bold and skillful rider, and showed here his 
boyish fondness for horses and knowledge of their 
character, which to this day distinguish him. 



30 LIFE OF GRANT. 

He could talk "horse'' then as well as now when 
badgered by politicians. 

Only thirty of the original number that formed 
the class with which young Grant began his ca- 
reer graduated with him. Some of those suc- 
cessful ones he afterwards served with under a 
common flag, and still later met them as foes on 
the battle-field. 

Brevetted as second lieutenant of the Fourth 
Infantry, he now joined his regiment at Jefferson 
Barracks, in Missouri, empty yet of any actual 
command. He had little to do beyond the rou- 
tine of daily duties, except now and then to ac- 
company an expedition along the frontiers, to 
look after troublesome Indians. 

In 1844 his regiment was ordered to the Bed 
Biver, in Louisiana. His life here was dull and 
dreary to one ambitious of distinction. 

But the rumors of hostilities between the 
United States and Mexico, growing out of the 
boundary line, roused every young officer into 
new life. The rio-ht or wrono; of a war troubled 
them but little, so that the road to distinction was 
opened to them. 

In 1845, when Gen. Taylor was sent to the 
Bio Grande with an army of occupation. Grant's 
regiment formed j)art of his force. In the mean- 
time he was transferred to the Seventh regiment, 
but this change was so repugnant to him that he 



HIS FIRST BATTLE. 31 

applied to the government for permission to remain 
with his old regiment. This request was granted, 
and in 1846 we find him a full second lieutenant, 
lying with his regiment at Matamoras. March- 
ing with Taylor to Point Isabel, he, on the return 
of the little army to relieve the sore-pressed gar- 
rison of Fort Bro^^^l, took his first lesson in prac- 
tical war, at Palo Alto. In this, his first battle, 
he acted with that settled coolness and prompt- 
ness which have always characterized him. The 
shout of victory rolling over the field had hardly 
died away before the sharp, decisive action of 
Resaca de la Palma completed the discomfiture 
of the Mexican army, and it fled over the river 
in confusion. Then came the long, joyful shout 
of welcome from the manned ramparts of Fort 
Bro'^vn, as the liberated garrison saw their deliv- 
erers marching gayly forward to the sound of 
triumphant music. 

The war had now fairly begun, and Taylor took 
up his line of march for Monterey. In the des- 
perate fight for this place Grant's regiment bore 
its appropriate part. 

The young soldier had now received the full 
baptism of fire necessary to his introduction into 
the stern realities of his profession. 

When Scott organized his force for the invasion 
of Mexico, Grant's regiment was amonsr the num- 
ber of those he withdrew from Taylor. 



32 LIFE OF GRANT. 

After the fall of Vera Cruz, the army started 
for the Mexican capital, and Grant received the 
appointment of quartermaster of his regiment, 
and at the same time acted on the staff of his 
general. 

The long and toilsome marches, the bloody bat- 
tles, the splendid strategy of Scott, that make up 
the history of the weeks and months that followed, 
were an important part of the training of Grant, 
the results of which were to be seen in future years. 

At the battle of Molino del E,ey his gallant 
bearing won for him promotion on the spot, as 
first lieutenant, though Congress did not confirm 
the appointment. 

At the battle of Chapultepec, which followed in 
a few days, he had an opportunity to especially dis- 
tinguish himself. Nearly half way up the sloj^e to 
the foot of the castle's walls, stood a strong field- 
work, so flanked by ravines and chasms that its 
capture was a most hazardous enterprise. But it 
must be carried before the storming parties with 
fascines and ladders could advance, and the batta- 
lion ordered to take it marched boldly forward, 
under a fierce, withering fire. The ranks 
were frightfully thinned and more or less dis- 
organized, especially when they got in close 
musket-range of the redoubt, and success became 
doubtful. At this critical moment Grant rallied 
a few men of his regiment, and with Captain 



GALLANT CONDUCT. 33 

Brookes, who did the same with that of the 
Second Artillery, suddenly wheeled to the left, 
and enveloping the enemy's right flank with 
their rapid fire, rolled it back m confusion. Other 
regiments now coming up to their support, the 
Mexicans fled, and the redoubt was carried. This 
flank movement was a brilliant conception in the 
heat of the battle, and was carried out against 
overwhelming numbers, and in the face of a dead- 
ly fire. It was mentioned in the various reports 
of the officers, and among others by Col., subse- 
quently General Garland, who after describing it 
says, " I must not omit to call attention to Lieut. 
Grant, who acquitted himself most nobly upon 
several occasions, under my observation." It 
would be interesting to know the details of the 
events in which he " aGquitted himself most nobly.'" 
But this much is on record, that in galloping 
all steadily through storms of shot and shell to 
deliver orders, and rallying a handful of men 
right under the enemy's guns, and heading the des- 
perate charge, " he acquitted himself most nobly." 
One of the occasions referred to by Garland, was 
in the battle of Molino del Key, which occurred a few 
days before that of Chapultepec. The thrilling 
scene was described to us by General Garland him- 
self. After the battery midway to the mills on the 
top of the slope was carried by the desperate charge 
of Major Wright, with a handful of men, the Mex- 



34 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ican forces were divided, and the battle resolved it 
self into two separate attacks. Garland commanded 
one of the columns, which now, with Drum's bat- 
tery of only two pieces at its head, took up its 
desperate march for the works on the top of the 
hill. The advance was slow and toilsome, for that 
slight battery had to contend against overwhelm- 
ing odds, and its progress gauged that of the col- 
umn. Covering the infantry, it had to make a path 
for it to the walls of the mill. Garland watched 
with the deepest anxiety the eifect of its fire, for 
should it be silenced he would be compelled to 
march over the wreck of the guns, and push the 
uncovered, naked head of his column up to the very 
muzzles of the Mexican cannon, or retreat. He 
did not mean that any contingency should force 
him to the latter alternative, for when the mo- 
ment of decision arrived he had resolved to charge 
with the bayonet, over barricades, guns, gunners, 
and all. At length, weary with the slow and 
deadly effort, he, while Drum, after a short and 
rapid fire, was advancing his pieces, called a di'um- 
mer and bade him place his drum on the ground 
for a seat, on which he might rest for a moment. 
The instant after he was seated, a grapeshot 
struck the cap from his head, and grazed the skull 
so closely as to carry away his wig. Had he been 
standing erect it would have passed through his 
body. 



A NOBLE EXAMPLE. 35 

At length, under the overwhehning fire of the 
enemy's batteries, every gunner attached to 
Drum's pieces was killed or wounded. Garland 
then called on the infantry to supply their places, 
but not a man volunteered. They had. one and all 
toiled bravely forward to the spot where the bay- 
onet must decide the conflict, and they would not 
throw aside their muskets at such a critical mo- 
ment. But those guns must be served, for every 
shot was worth a whole regiment of men in de- 
molishing the defences preparatory to the final as- 
sault. A few 5^oung men seeing the dilemma, 
sprang forward, manned the pieces, and rolled 
them forward through the iron hail till they were 
within a hundred yards of the hostile batteries, 
and there played on the foe with a rapidity and 
power nothing could withstand. Each one of 
those gallant youthful artillerists was a West 
Point officer. Right there in the blaze of the hos- 
tile guns they loaded and fired as coolly as though 
on parade. Carried away by such a noble ex- 
ample of self-devotion, the soldiers charged with 
a high and ringing cheer, and clearing every ob- 
stacle that opposed their progress, swept the de- 
fences with resistless power. No wonder Garland 
could say of such ofiicers, " they acquitted them- 
selves most nobly.'''' 

At the outset of the campaign Scott had called 
the West Point officers about him, and told them 



36 LIFE OF GRANT. 

that he was entering on it " with a halter around 
his neck," with " the end of it at Washington,'' and 
said he, "I expect you, my young friends, to get 
this halter ofF for me." Grant was one of the 
brave officers who did get it off. 

At length. Grant had the proud satisfaction of 
riding into the grand plaza of the Mexican capi- 
tal beside his commander, and seeing the stars 
and stripes hoisted on its public buildings. That 
young officer, standing proudly in the heart of the 
conquered city, and the tanner s son with his pole 
and hook fishing out hides from his father s vats, 
present a striking contrast, and yet such, in some 
form or other, our republican institutions furnish 
every year, to the astonishment of the old world. 

The siege, the toilsome march, the consummate 
strategy exhibited in every important movement, 
the bloody battles, furnished a school in which 
young Grant was trained for a position of 
which he then little dreamed. He was one of 
those who in time of war, if death spares them, 
rise rapidly in rank. But the proclamation of 
peace soon ended his dreams of preferment, and 
the army was scattered through the various posts 
of our wide country. 

Young Grant returned home, and in August 
of 1848 married a Miss Dent, daughter of a mer- 
chant in St. Louis, Missouri. 

His regiment being stationed at Detroit, he. 



DREARY SERVICE. 37 

after a short furlough, joined it there, still hold- 
ing the position of quartermaster. It was after- 
wards transferred to Sackett's Harbor, on the 
northern frontier of New York State. Subse- 
quently the regiment was ordered to California, 
where, after its arrival, a portion was detached 
for duty in Oregon, then almost as much out of 
the country as our new possession of Alaska now 
is. Nothing could be more dreary than life in 
this remote region, far away from his family — 
through summer and the long winter, day after 
day, and month after month, the same monoto- 
nous round of duties. The morning reveille — 
the drill — the evening tattoo — these constitute 
the excitements of a soldier s life on one of our 
frontier posts. No places of amusement, no so- 
cial circles in which to spend an hour, no libraries, 
papers and letters coming only at long intervals, 
combine to make an officer's life at one of them 
dismal and lonely in the extreme. For two years 
Captain Grant (for his rank had been confirmed), 
was thus shut up in that then remote, thinly set- 
tled territory. 

The Mexican wsir had promoted so many young 
officers that there was no probability that Grant 
would get beyond the rank of captain till his head 
was gray. He had now served more than the 
eight years required by the government to pay for 
four years of education at West Point, and hence 



38 LIFE OF GRANT. 

felt at liberty to consult his own interest in future. 
Other officers had resigned, and were already oh 
the fair road to wealth and competence, and there 
was no reason why he should waste the best part 
of his life in idleness. There seemed no prospect 
of his services in the field ever being needed by 
the government; besides, if they were he could vol- 
unteer them. In fact, there was every motive to 
induce an active, enterprising young man to leave 
the army at that time, and many, especially north- 
ern officers, did. Grant followed their example, 
and, resigning his commission, returned home to try 
his fortune in civil life. Taking a small farm near 
his father-in-law, in the vicinity of St. Louis, he 
settled down to the quiet life of a western farmer. 
A. person familiar with this part of his life says : 

It is well known that when he resided in Missouri he 
was very poor, and lived in a small, uncomfortable house, 
cultivating a farm of a few acres. His chief income was 
derived by hauling wood to the City of St. Louis. He 
used to supply Hon. Henry T. Blow, of that city, with 
his fuel. Mr. Blow was elected to the Thirty-ninth 
Congress, and on one occasion went with his wife to one 
of Gen. Grant's popular receptions. Mrs. Blow won- 
dered if General Grant would recognize her as an old 
friend or acquaintance, under the different circum- 
stances of their relative situations in life. "Well, Mrs. 
Blow had not been long at the General's before he 
came to her and said, " Mrs. Blow, I remember you 
well. What great changes have taken place since we 
last met ! " " Yes, General," said Mrs. B., " the war 
is over." " I did not mean that," he replied ; " I mean 
with myself. Do you recollect when I used to supply 



A LBATHER-DEALER. 30 

your husband with wood, and pile it myself, and meas- 
ure it too, and go to his office for my pay ? " " Oh, yes. 
General, your face was familiar in those days." " Mrs. 
Blow, those were happy days ; for I was doing the best 
I could to support my family." 

He afterwards endeavored to add to his income 
by the collection of debts for others, though dunning 
delinquent debtors proved neither a pleasant nor 
a profitable business. 

The ex-captain was not getting along very pros- 
perously in his new vocation, and his chances of 
obtaining even a competence were very doubtful. 
His father learning-the unfavorable condition of 
affairs, wrote to him, proposing that he should 
come on to Illinois and assist in the leather trade. 
It promised to be far more lucrative than his pres- 
ent occupation, and he accepted the ofi'er and re- 
moved to Galena. In 1859, over a modest store, 
the sign of "Grant & Son, Leather Dealers," 
could be seen. It is said that he did not prove a 
very active merchant. Handling sides of leather 
^vas very different from handling a sword, and chaf- 
fering with customers came rather hard after beino- 
so many years accustomed to command. Still the 
business was in a flourishing condition, and to all 
human appearance his occupation was fixed for 
life. He expected to be leather-dealer, nothing 
more, and his highest ambition could reach no , 
farther than moderate wealth. 

Here the history of his life might have ended 



40 LIFE OF GRANT. 

but for the civil war into which we were plunged. 
Although like McClellan, and Sherman, and 
Hooker, and Slocum, and others, he was out of 
the service, no sooner did the country need his ex- 
perience and aid than his civil pursuits were cast 
aside. It is to the everlasting honor of West Point, 
and a complete refutation of the slanders uttered 
against it, that though so many officers had resigned 
their commissions, and' a portion of them were on 
the high road to wealth, every one, to a man, 
abandoned at once his profession or business and 
took up his long-neglected sword, and offered his 
services to his country. From the counter, from 
the law-office, from the engineer's room, and from 
the school-room, they came swarming at her call. 







© 






ft s ^ 



CHAPTER HI. 

A BRIGADIER-GENERAL. 

His Politics — Raises a Company and takes it to Springfield — He of- 
fers his services to the Government — His letter unanswered — 
Assists Governor Yates in organizing the troops — Made Colonel 
of the 21st Eegiment — Endeavors to get on McClellan's staff- 
Serves in Missouri — Made Brigadier-General — Amusing Anec- 
dote of him— Makes Cairo his Headquarters — Occupies Padu- 
cah — Proclamation to the People — Correspondence with General 
Polk— Battle of Behnont — His congratulatory Order— Letter 
to his Father, giving an account of the Action — The Cairo Ex- 
pedition — Order respecting it— Retaliatory Order — Proposes to 
Halleck to seize Fort Henry — Rude treatment by the latter. 

Though opposed to the election of Mr. Lincoln, 
because he believed that it would intensify the 
hostility already existing between the North and 
South, he took no active part in politics, content- 
ing himself simply with voting. Then, as now, 
he thought little of party — his country was his 
party, her welfare his only object, and hence he 
watched with the deepest anxiety the gathering 
elements of civil strife on every side. 

The news of the fall of Fort Sumter — of the insult 
to the flag he had so often battled under, aroused 
all the slumbering fire of his nature, and he im- 
mediately organized a company of volunteers and 
took it to Springfield, Illinois. He then wrote a 



42 LIFE OF GRANT. 

letter to the adjutant-general, offering his services to 
his country, but it was never even acknowledged. 
With that modesty which always distinguished 
him, he did not, like others, apply for a high rank, 
but was willing to serve in any capacity the gov- 
ernment miffht select. But he was too obscure to 

o 

be wanted when so many eminent civilians offered 
themselves as commanders. 

His name was in the meantime presented to 
Governor Yates, by a friend, who spoke of his mil- 
itary education and his gallant record, acquired 
during the Mexican war. The governor needing 
some one to assist him in arranging the quota of 
the State, that had been called out, commissioned 
him as adjutant and set him to work. 

A short time after, the governor, receiving a re- 
quest from the President to send on two names 
for the position of brigadier-general, proposed 
to Grant to send his. The latter, however, de- 
clined the offer, preferring, he said, to earn his 
promotion. Having completed the work required 
of him to meet the first call on the State for troops, 
he was in the middle of June commissioned a 
colonel of the 21st Regiment, that its own colonel 
could not manage. Below the medium height, 
and shabby in appearance, tiie new colonel did not 
make a favorable impression on the regiment, but 
the men soon found they had a character to deal 
with that would not admit of trifling. He was now, 



HIS SERVICES NOT WANTED. 43 

at last, in the army of the Union. He had offered 
his services to the general government, but no 
notice was taken of it. He had also tried to get 
on the staff of McClellan, but failed. Hearing of 
the latter's appointment as Major-General of Ohio 
Volunteers, he modestly thought, as an old army 
friend, he might offer him a position on his staff, 
and went to Cincinnati to see him. He called on 
him twice, but finding him not in either time, and 
seeing a crowd of applicants around his head- 
quarters, he became discouraged, and returned 
home. On what slight events a man's destiny 
sometimes turns ! Had Grant obtained an inter- 
view with McClellan, he doubtless would have re- 
ceived the coveted appointment, and shared that 
commander s fortune and fate, and been lost to the 
war. 

However, it will be seen that the whole credit 
of putting Grant in the field belongs to Governor 
Yates. 

Grant's regiment was first assigned to Pope's 
department in Northern Missouri, where his duty 
was to guard the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad. 
Other regiments were in this region, and he be- 
came for a time acting brigadier-general. On the 
7th of August, 1861, he received his commission 
as brigadier-general, for which he was indebted to 
E. B. Washburn, a fellow-townsman, though 
scarce an acquaintance, who ever after, as member 



44 LIFE OF GRANT. 

of Congress, stood nobly by him when all others 
seemed ready to desert him. He was no^w sent 
to Southern Missouri, which was threatened by 
Jeff. Thompson. He marched to Ironton and 
Marble Creek, fortifying and garrisoning the latter 
places, and thence to Jefferson City, which was re- 
ported to be in danger. 

The following incident, which occurred on this 
long and tedious march, illustrates one phase of 
Grant's character. It is said that he is as "distin- 
guished for his eccentric humor, as for his skill 
and bravery." In this case there was a certain 
grimness in the humor, for while it raised a laugh 
on one side, on the other it cut like a sword, for 
it administered a stern rebuke. 

A member of his staff says : 

"When Grant was a brigadier in Southeast 
Missouri, he commanded an expedition against 
the rebels under Jeff. Thompson in Northeast 
Arkansas. The distance from the starting point 
of the expedition to the supposed rendezvous of 
the rebels was about one hundred and ten miles, 
and the greater portion of the route lay through 
a howling wilderness. The imaginary suffering 
that our soldiers endured during the first two days 
of their march was enormous. It was impossible 
to steal or 'confiscate' uncultivated real estate, 
and not a hog, or a chicken, or an ear of corn 
was anywhere to be seen. On the third day, 



A COSTLY PIE. 45 

however, affairs looked more hopeful, for a few 
small specks of ground, in a state of partial cul- 
tivation, were here and there visible. On that 
day. Lieutenant Wickfield, of an Indiana cavalry 
regiment, commanded the advance guard, consist- 
ing of eight mounted men. About noon he came 
up to a small farmhouse, from the outward ap- 
pearance of which he judged that there might be 
something fit to eat inside. He halted his com- 
pany, dismounted, and with two second lieuten- 
ants entered the dwelling. He knew that Grant's 
incipient fame had already gone out through all 
that country, and it occurred to him that by rep- 
resenting himself to be the general he might 
obtain the best the house afforded. So, assumino; 
a very imj^erative demeanor, he accosted the in- 
mates of the house, and told them he must have 
something for himself and staff to eat. They 
desired to know who he was, and he told them 
that he was Brigadier-General Grant. At the 
sound of that name they all flew around with 
alarming alacrity, and served up about all they 
had in the house, taking great pains all the while 
to make loud professions of loyalty. The lieu- 
tenants ate as much as they could of the not 
over-sumptuous meal, but which was, neverthe- 
less, good for that country, and demanded what 
was to pay. ' Nothing.'* And they went on their 
way rejoicing. 



46 LIFE OF GRANT. 

"In the meantime General Grant, who had 
halted his army a few miles further back for a 
brief resting spell, came in sight of, and was 
rather favorably impressed with the appearance 
of, this same house. Hiding up to the fence in 
front of the door, he desired to know if they 
would cook him a meal. 

" ' No,' said a female, in a gruff voice; ' General 
Grant and his staff have just been here, and 
eaten every thing in the house except one pump- 
kin pie. 

" 'Humph,' murmured Grant ; ' what is your 
name ? ' 

" ' Selvidge,' replied the woman. 

" Casting a half dollar in at the door, he asked 
if she would keep that pie till he sent an officer 
for it ; to which she replied that she would. 

" That evening, after the camping ground had 
been selected, the various regiments were notified 
that there would be a grand parade at half-past 
six, for orders. Officers would see that all their 
men turned out, etc. 

"In five minutes the camp was in a perfect up- 
roar, and filled with all sorts of rumors. Some 
thought the enemy were upon them, it being so 
unusual to have parades when on a march. 

"At half-past six the parade was formed, ten 
columns deep and nearly a quarter of a mile in 
length." 



AN EXCITING ORDER. 47 

After the usual routine of ceremonies, the 
acting assistant adjutant-general read the follow- 
ing order : 

Eeadquaetees, Aemt in the Field. 

SPECIAL OKDEK NO. . 

Lieutenant "Wickfield, of the Indiana Cavalry, having 
on this day eaten every thing in Mrs. Selvidge's house, 
at the crossing of the Trenton and Pocahontas and 
Black Kiver and Cape Girardeau roads, except one 
pumpkin-pie, Lieutenant Wickfield is hereby ordered 
to return with an escort of one hundred cavalry, and 
eat that pie also. U. S. Grant, 

Brigadier-General Commanding. 

One can scarcely imagine the astonishment 
which the promulgation of this order caused, 
made as it was with all the seriousness of one 
just preceding a battle, nor of the uproarious 
merriment and laughter of the soldiers as the 
true state of the case became known. Shout 
after shout rolled over the field as the astounded 
lieutenant ordered up his escort and trotted out 
of camp. There was no evading the order. Back 
along the road he had just travelled so wearily, he 
made his way to the widow's house, and deliber- 
ately ordered out the solitary pie he had been so 
kind as to leave for his general a little while before. 

It was carried off as a grand joke, yet there 
was a sting to it. It requu'ed no explana- 
tion. Each officer learned two things by it he 
would not be apt soon to forget. First, not to 



48 LIFE OF GRANT. 

forao;e right in front of his commander without 
any reference to his needs ; second, to be careful 
how he assumed his character and authority any- 
where. The last was doubtless the chief lesson 
Grant designed to inculcate. Reports and slan- 
ders of all kinds against a general who was com- 
pelled to march through a divided country were 
rife enough, without having any act that a subor- 
dinate might commit charged to him. We ven- 
ture to say Lieutenant Wickfield has never eaten 
a pie since, without thinking of that one which 
required an escort of a hundred men to dispose of. 
The district of Southeastern Missouri was 
placed under his command on the 1st of Septem- 
ber, by Fremont, who succeeded Pope, and in- 
cluded such portions on the borders of Kentucky 
and Tennessee as he might deem best to occupy. 
His headquarters were at Cairo, a most important 
point strategetically, for here the four rivers, Mis- 
sissippi, Ohio, Cumberland, and Tennessee, unite. 
The two first kept open his own communications, 
and the two latter carried supplies to the enemy. 
Grant early saw how vital the occupation and hold- 
ing of it was. Kentucky claimed to be neutral 
territory, thereby forbidding the establishment of 
any military post within her boundaries ; yet Co- 
lumbus and Hickman, both in the limits of the 
State, and situated on the banks of the Mississip- 
pi, had been seized and held by the rebels, as well 



OCCUPIES PADUCAII. 49 

as tlie central position of Bowling Green. Grant 
felt that it would not do to regard a neutrality 
which allowed the enemy to seize all the import- 
ant points in the State ; and Paducah, at the 
mouth of the Tennessee, commanding the naviga- 
tion both of it and the Ohio, being a most im- 
portant place, he determined to seize it before it 
fell into their hands. Delay was dangerous, and 
if he waited until the vexed question of occupying 
neutral territory was thoroughly discussed, it 
might be too late. He did not even apply for per- 
mission to his immediate superior, Fremont, but 
simply notified him that he was going to move at 
once, unless he received a telegram to the contrary. 
He did not delay a moment longer than neces- 
sary, but on the 6th of September despatched a 
steamer loaded with troops to occupy it. To 
make it as little offensive as possible, he issued 
the following proclamation to the people, explana- 
tory of the motives that governed him : 

Paducah, Ky., September 6, 1861. 

To the Citizens of Paducah : 

I am come among you, not as an enemy, but as your 
fellow-citizen. IS^ot to maltreat you, nor annoy you, 
but to respect and enforce the rights of all loyal citizens. 
An enemy in rebellion against our common Govern- 
ment has taken possession of, and planted liis guns upon 
the soil of Kentucky, and fired upon you. Columbus 
and Hickman are in his hands. lie is moving upon 
your city. I ara here to defend you against this enemy, 



50 LIFE OF GRANT. 

to assist tlie authority and sovereignty of your Govern- 
ment. I have nothing to do with oj)inio7is, and shall 
deal only with armed rebellion, and its aiders and abet- 
tors. Tou can pursue your usual avocations without 
fear. The strong arm of the Government is here to pro- 
tect its friends and punish its enemies. Whenever it is 
manifest that you are able to defend yourselves, and 
maintain the authority of the Government, and protect 
the rights of loyal citizens, I shall withdraw the forces 
under my command. U. S. Grant, 

Brigadier-General Commanding. 

The legislature of the State remonstrated against 
the seizure of Paducah as an act of aggression, and 
a correspondence followed between it and Grant, 
in which the latter vindicated his course in a 
courteous manner, and quietly held the post. 

The next month he received a communication 
from Gen. Polk, proposing an exchange of pris- 
oners — several having been taken in portions of 
his department. To this he sent the following 
short, reply: 

Hbadqtjaeteks Dept. Southeast Missouri, 
Oaieo, October 11, 1861. 

General : 

Yours of this date is just received. In regard to an 
exchange of prisoners, as proposed, I can of my own 
accordance make none. 1 recognize no " Southern 
Confederacy " myself, but will communicate with higher 
authorities for their views. Should I not be sustained, 
I will find means of communicating with you. 
Respectfully, your obedient servant, 

11. S. Grant, 
Brigadier-General Commanding. 

To Major- General Pollc^ Columhts, Ky. 



BELMONT. 51 

During this month Col. Plumraer obtained a 
victory over JefF. Thompson in Southeast Mis- 
souri, which brought out a highly complimentary 
order from Grant. 

Columbus, only a few miles below the mouth of 
the Ohio, was the first of a series of defences 
erected by the enemy along the Mississippi to pre- 
vent its navigation by our steamers, and the whole 
country, especially the Northwest, were clamorous 
for its capture. In the meantime, word having 
been received that troops were about being moved 
from this point to cooperate with Price in Mis- 
souri, Grant was ordered to make a demonstration 
against Columbus to prevent it. 

The enemy at this time had a large force under 
Polk at Columbus, also a camp and garrison op- 
posite, at Belmont. Grant, finding his force too 
small to attack the former place, determined to 
break up the camp at the latter. In order not to 
be overwhelmed by the garrison at Columbus, he 
asked Gen. Smith, commanding at Paducah, to 
make a demonstration against the former place, 
which he did, by sending a small force, that was 
not to advance nearer, however, than twelve or 
fifteen miles. He also despatched another detach- 
ment on the Kentucky side, for the same purpose, 
with directions not to advance nearer than Elli- 
cott's Mills, twelve miles from Columbus. 

The force under his own command was two 



52 LIFE OF GRANT. 

thousand eight hundred and fifty strong. These 
were embarked in transports on the evening of the 
6th of November, and moved down to the foot of 
Island No. Ten, within eleven miles of Columbus, 
where they stopped for the night, and tied up to the 
Kentucky shore. At daylight next morning the 
transports passed quietly down-stream till almost 
within range of the rebel guns, when they were 
quickly pushed to the Missouri shore, and the 
troops landed. The gunboats Tyler and Lexing- 
ton accompanied them. 

The cannon were hauled by hand up the steep 
banks amid dropping shot and shell from the 
rebel encampment, from which, as it occupied an 
elevated position. Grant's movements could be dis- 
tinctly seen. 

The troops, after landing, passed through some 
cornfields and halted, preparatory to an advance. 
Colonel Buford was ordered to make a detour to 
the right, and come down on the rebel camp in 
that direction. The main army then moved for- 
ward till it arrived within a mile and a half of the 
abatis that the rebels had piled in their front. 
This was composed of trees, that for several hun- 
dred yards had been felled with their tops pointing 
outward, and the limbs sharpened, so that a dense 
breastwork of points confronted any force advanc- 
ing down the river. The gunboats in the mean- 
time were engaging the batteries at Columbus. 



THE BATTLE. 53 

As tlie columns advanced, the dropping fire of 
the skirmishers showed that the enemy had been 
met, and was determined to dispute every inch of 
ground to their encampment. The Thirtieth and 
Thirty-first having been sent forward to relieve 
the skirmishers, a spirited action was commenced, 
which lasted for half an hour, in which our ranks 
were thro^vll into disorder. Colonels Foulke and 
Logan, however, soon rallied them, and drove the 
enemy back for a quarter of a mile, where, being 
reinforced, they attempted to turn McClernand's 
left flank. Being defeated in this by a prompt 
movement of Colonel Logan, and suddenly swept 
by a fierce fire of artillerj^ and musketry, they be- 
gan to show signs of wavering. Foulke and Lo- 
gan, sword in hand, shouted to their men, ursins: 
them forward by stirring appeals, which were an- 
swered with cheers, and these raw troops stood up 
like veterans to their work. 

The officers, however, had to set the example of 
exposure, for now, added to the fire in front, the 
batteries at Columbus, which had ceased firing 
at the gunboats, sent their huge projectiles crash- 
ing through the tree-tops ovei'head. Grant and 
McClernand were both in the thickest of the fight, 
exposing themselves like the commonest soldier. 
The latter, while leading a gallant charge, received 
a ball in his holster ; and the horse of Grant was 
killed under him. While this struggle was going 



54 LITE OF GRANT. 

on, a tremendous fire from the Twenty-seventh 
broke over the woods, to the right and rear of the 
rebel encampment. The other regiments having 
now worked their way into line through the brush- 
wood, the whole closed sternly up on three sides 
of the abatis at once, and sweeping rapidly for- 
ward, drove the enemy pell-mell through it. Fol- 
lowing close on their heels, our excited troops 
dashed through and over with a cheer. The sight 
of the Twenty-seventh in the open space beyond 
roused all their ardor, and they, too, soon stood 
in the clear ground around the camp. The artil- 
lery opened on the tents, not three hundred yards 
distant, and the rebels broke for the river and the 
Avoods like a flock of frightened sheep. 

The torch was then applied to the tents and bag- 
gage, and in a moment the spot was wrapt in flames 
and smoke. The enraged enemy across the river at 
Columbus now turned their batteries on the smok- 
ing camp, and soon shot and sheU. were hurtling 
through the air on every side. Grant saw at once 
that he could not stay here ; and to make matters 
worse, he was informed that the rebels had thro^vn 
a large force across the river, directly in his rear, 
and between him and his transports. 

Without showing the least surprise or anxiety, 
he quietly said, " Well, if that is so, we must cut 
our way out as we cut our way in." Soon after, 
in reply to an expression of anxiety as to the re- 



CONGRATULATORY ORDER. 55 

suit, bv an officer, he said, " We have whipped 
them once, and can whip them again." Order- 
ing the artillery to the front, he gave the com- 
mand to advance, and his little army moved 
straight on the astonished enemy, and reached 
the transports waiting to receive them. 

It was a spirited contest. The Seventh Iowa 
especially fought gallantly, losing their lieutenant- 
colonel and major, the colonel himself being 
wounded. Our total loss was about five hundred, 
while that of the rebels was nearly a thousand — a 
great disparity, especially when it is considered 
that we were the attacking party, and the former 
fought a part of the time behind defences. Two 
guns were brought off, and two more spiked, and 
some battle-flags captured, together with many 
prisoners. Grant was delighted with the conduct 
of his men, and issued the following congratula- 
tory order to his troops, the first he ever penned 
after a battle : 

IIeadquaetees District, S. C, Mo., ) 
Caieo, November 8, 1861. \ 

The General commanding this Military District re- 
turns his thanks to the troops under his command at the 
battle of Belmont on yesterday. 

It has been his fortune to have been in all the battles 
fought in Mexico by Generals Scott and Taylor, except 
Buena Yista, and he never saw one more hotly contested, 
or where the troops behaved with more gallantry. 

Such courage will insure victory wherever our flag 



56 LIFE OF GRANT. 

may be borne and protected by such a class of men. To 
the brave men who fell, the sympathy of the country is 
due, and will be manifested in a manner unmistakable. 

IJ. S. Geant, 
Brigadier-General Commanding. 

Though this action was gallantly fought, it in- 
jured, rather than helped, the opening prospects of 
Grant. It being generally thought that the object 
of the expedition was to take Columbus, it was 
regarded as a total failure, and so reported by the 
rebels. 

Since the war he has written a full and com- 
plete report of the whole movement, and request- 
ed it to be substituted for the one that he made at 
the time. In this, which is given in the Appen- 
dix, he shows that he simply executed orders ; so 
that whatever blame may attach to the expedition, 
it does not rest on him. 

More interesting, however, than this report, is 
the following private letter to his father, giving 
an account of the battle, and showing his feelings 
at its result. He says that he can assert " with 
great gratification, that every man, without a single 
exception, set an example to their comrades that 
inspired a confidence that will always give victory 
when there is the slightest possibility of gaining 
one. I feel truly proud to command such men. 

" From here we fought our way from tree to 
tree, through the woods to Belmont, about two 



LETTER TO HIS FATHER. 57 

and a half miles, the enemy contesting every foot of 
ground. Here the enemy had strengthened their 
position by felling the trees for two or three hun- 
dred yards, and sharpening their limbs, making a 
sort of abatis. Our men charged through, mak- 
ing the victory complete, giving us possession of 
their camp and garrison equipage, artiller}-, and 
eyery thing else. 

" We got a great many prisoners. The major- 
ity, however, succeeded in getting aboard their 
steamers and pushing across the river. We 
burned every thing possible, and started back, 
having accomplished all that we went for, and 
even more. Belmont is entirely covered by the 
batteries from Columbus, and is worth nothing as 
a military position — cannot be held without Co- 
lumbus. 

" The object of the expedition was to prevent 
the enemy from sending a force into Missouri to 
cut off troops I had sent there for a special pur- 
pose, and to prevent re-enforcing Price. 

" Besides being well fortified at Columbus, their 
number far exceeded ours, and it would have been 
folly to have attacked them. We found the Con- 
federates well ai*med, and brave. On our return, 
stragglers, that had been left in our rear (now 
front), fired into us, and more recrossed the river 
and gave us battle for a full mile, and afterward 
at the boats, when we were embarking. 

3* 



58 LIFE OF GRANT. 

"There was no hasty retreating or running 
away. Taking into account the object of the ex- 
pedition, the victory was complete. It" has given 
confidence in the officers and men of this command, 
that will enable us to lead them in any future ac- 
tion without fear of the result. General McCler- 
nand (who, by the way, acted with great coolness 
and courage throughout) and myself each had 
our horses shot under us. Most of the field-offi- 
cers met with the same loss, besides one third of 
them being themselves killed or womided. As 
near as can be ascertained, our loss was about two 
hundred and fifty killed and wounded." 

This battle took place on the 7th of November. 
Four days after, General Halleck superseded Fre- 
mont in the Western Department, and Grant's 
district was enlarged. He now began to assemble 
troops at Paducah, preparatory to some general 
movement of the forces under his command. It 
was generally supposed its objective point was 
Columbus, and great hopes -s^ere entertained that 
this stronghold, whose occupation by the enemy 
was a source of such constant irritation to the 
West, would be captured. 

The Cairo expedition, as it was called, com- 
menced in the very heart of winter, and three 
grand columns, under Paine, McClernand, and C. 
F. Smith, in all nineteen regiments of infantry, 
six of cavaliy, and seven batteries, moved off into 



A NOBLE ORDER. 59 

the interior. McClernand, with some five thou- 
sand men, made a march of seventy-five miles 
over ice, and through snow and mud, while the 
cavalry marched a hundred and forty, and came 
back again, reporting that some new roads had 
been discovered, foolish reports exploded, the in- 
habitants impressed with our military strength, 
&c., and that apparently was all. The movement, 
however, was in accordance with Halleck's order, 
and the object of it was to prevent the enemy 
from sending reinforcements to Buckner at Bowl- 
ing Green. 

An order, designed to guide the conduct of 
the troops in this expedition, reveals that even 
balance of Grant's judgment and feelings under all 
circumstances which forms one of the brightest 
traits in his character. Swayed neither by false 
logic nor carried away by passion, he sees the 
right, and has the firmness to pursue it. 

He says, "Disgrace having been brought upon 
our brave fellows by the bad conduct of some of 
their members, showing, on all occasions, when 
passing through territory occupied by sympathiz- 
ers of the enemy, a total disregard of the rights of 
citizens, and being guilty of the wanton destruc- 
tion of private property, the General Command- 
ing desires and intends to enforce a change in this 
respect." =^-' ='= ^'= ''■ 

"It is ordered that the severest punishment 



60 ' LIFE OF GRANT. 

be inflicted upon every soldier who is guilty of 
taking or destroying private property, and any 
commissioned officer guilty of like conduct, or of 
countenancing it, shall be deprived of his sword, 
and expelled from the army, not to be permitted 
to return," &c. 

It will stand recorded to his endurmg honor, 
that, amid all the exasperation, public clamor, 
and private temptations, that carried so many be- 
yond the limits and laws of civilized warfare, he 
maintained a character above reproach. Many 
of our officers were guilty of atrocious violations 
of private property, whose conduct has thus far 
escaped public condemnation j but when the pres- 
ent chaotic state of affairs has wholly given place 
to calm reflection and Christian feeling, they will 
stand side by side in history with those epauletted 
marauders that disgraced the English flag, both in 
our first and second wars with England. 

Grant's record in this respect is untarnished. 
What he was at first, he continued to be to the 
last, temperate in judgment, dispassionate in feel- 
ing, and forbearing in the hour of victory. 

But while he could be thus forbearing, and 
show himself superior to petty revenge and a 
false public sentiment, he could be severe and re- 
lentless in the discharge of duty, no matter what 
suffering it might cause, or charge of cruelty it 
might provoke. 



A SEVERE ORDER. 61 

Hearing that his pickets were shot by the in- 
habitants who sympathized with the rebels, and 
yet whose property he was protecting, he issued 
the following order : 

Headquaetees, Cairo, January 11, 1862. 

Brigadier- General Paine, Bird's Point: 

I understand that four of our pickets were shot this 
morning. If this is so, and apj^earances indicate that 
the assassins were citizens, not regularly organized in 
the rebel army, the whole country should be cleared 
out for six miles around, and word given that all citi- 
zens making their appearance within those limits are 
liable to be shot. 

To execute this, patrols should be sent out in all di- 
rections, and bring into camp, at Bird's Point, all citi- 
zens, together with their subsistence, and require them 
to remain, under the penalty of death and destruction 
of their property, until properly relieved. 

Let no harm befall these people, if they quietly sub- 
mit ; but bring them in and place them in camp below 
the breastwork, and have them properly guarded. 

The intention is not to make political jprisoners of 
these people, hut to cut off a dangerous class of spies. 

This applies to all classes and conditions, age and 
sex. If, however, women and children prefer other 
protection than we can afford them, they may be allowed 
to retire beyond the limits indicated — not to return un- 
til authorized. 

By order of U. S. Grant, 

Brig.-Gen. Commanding. 

There is the true Cromwellian ring in this order. 
A Carlyle would say, here is no "rosewater sur- 
gery." Those who have mistaken his leniency for 



62 LIFE OF GRANT. 

mawkish sensibility, or any spnpathy ^vith those 
who are warring against a common government, 
may read this with much profit to themselves. It 
is worth pondering upon. This man, so quiet 
and moderate, and careful of the wants and rights 
of peaceable citizens, can strike with the relentless 
severity of a Nero when outraged justice and hu- 
manity require it. His heart, ever open to kind- 
ly feelings, delights to mitigate the horrors of war, 
but it does not prevent his grasp from tightening 
like steel on the throat of the guilty who abuse 
his forbearance, and mock his authority. 

Smith, one of the commanders of the Cairo Ex- 
pedition, reporting on his return that Fort Henry, 
on the Tennessee river, could be er^lly taken. 
Grant immediately forwarded this information to 
Halleck, and soon after asked permission in per- 
son to attack it. Halleck, however, treated the 
proposition with contempt and positive rudeness, 
which took Grant by surprise. It is difficult to 
determine what motive prompted this treatment, 
for the plan to capture this fort had been thor- 
oughly discussed the fall before, in Washington, 
previous to the departure of Buell for the west. 



CHAPTER IV. 

FORTS HENRY AND DONELSON. 

Importance of their Capture — Grant commands the land forces in 
the Expedition against them — Fort Henry taken by Admiral 
Foote — Grant's advance against Fort Donelson — Eepulse of 
Foote — Investment of the place — Description of its defences — 
Desperate Assault of Pillow — The Battle— Arrival of Grant on 
the Field — His sublime determination — Assault of the enemy's 
works — Smith's Success — The Night-Consultation of the Rebel 
Officers — Escape of Pillow and Floyd — Correspondence between 
Grant and Buckner— The Surrender — Grant breakfasts with 
the Rebel General— Result of the Victory— Enthusiasm of the 
People — Congratulatory Order to the Troops — Fall of Nash- 
ville — Consternation and Flight of the People — Violence of the 
Mob — Columbus Flanked. 

It has been supposed that the movement against 
Forts Henry and Donelson originated out West 
— some giving Halleck, others Grant and Foote, 
the credit of it ; but it had its origin much farther 
back than the suggestions made by those com- 
manders. 

Notwithstanding Halleck's rude treatment of 
Grant's proposition to seize Fort Henry, he soon 
found that Government had determined to send 
an expedition against both it and Fort Donelson, 
the one on the Cumberland and the other on the 
Tennessee river. Fort Columbus, deemed so im- 



64 LIFE OF GRANT. 

pregnable, was to be flanked by their capture, and 
a way opened into Tennessee. 

Fort Henry was the first object of attack — which 
was to be a combined one of the naval and land 
forces — Foote commanding the former and Grant 
the latter. 

A cordon of rebel posts extended at this time 
across the country from Columbus, on the Missis- 
sippi, to Richmond, on the James river, and with 
the line thoroughly broken at any one important 
point, the loj^al armies would be let loose to com- 
mence their southward march into the enemy's 
territory. Thomas had partially done it at Mill 
Spring, but at a point that, especially at mid- winter, 
rendered an advance impossible. But with the Ten- 
nessee and Cumberland rivers cleared, our gun- 
boats could move along with the land forces, car- 
rying all the supplies needed. 

The grand movement was fixed for the fore- 
part of February ; and when, on the morning of 
the 6th, Foote was unmooring from the bank 
where the fleet had lain all night, several miles 
below the fort, he told Grant that he must hurry 
forward his columns, or he would not be up in time 
to take part in the action, and secure the prison- 
ers. The latter smiled incredulously. But re- 
cent rains had made the cart-paths and roads so 
heavy, that his progress was slow. As he toiled 
forward, the heavy cannonading, as Foote ad- 



FORT HENRY. 65 

vanced to the attack, broke over the woods, and 
rolled in deep vibrations down the shore, quick- 
ening his movements. Before, however, the fort 
was reached, the firing ceased. Grant was per- 
plexed at the sudden termination of the contest ; 
it did not seeni possible that the fort had been taken 
so soon ; it was far more probable that the gun- 
boats had fallen back disabled. He sent scouts 
forward to ascertain the truth, which soon came 
galloping back with the news that our flag was 
flying above the fort. The unexpected tidings 
rolled do-\vn the line, followed by long and 
deafening cheers. Grant, with his stafl^, spur- 
red forward, and in half an hour rode into 
the fort, which was immediately turned over to 
him. 

Halleck, who never was anything but a martinet, 
though conducting war, as he believed, on scientific 
principles, now wrote to Grant to hold on and 
strengthen his position, and forwarded intrench- 
ing tools for that purpose. But this. Grant had 
no intention of doing. Fort Donelson, on the 
Cumberland, some twelve miles distant, was the 
key to Nashville, and he at once determined to 
advance against it. Having left a force in com- 
mand at Fort Henry, to hold it, he, with some 
fifteen thousand men, struck across the country, 
while Foote, -sAith six regiments aboard, went 
round with his gunboats to attack it on the water 



66 LIFE OP GRANT. 

front. Floyd commanded the fort, with Pillow 
and Buckner under him. 

The rebel works here covered a series of hills, 
some of them steep, and a hundred feet high, 
while in front of them the trees had been felled 
with the bushy tops pointing downward and out- 
ward, through which it seemed impossible that 
troops could force their way. Gullies and ravines 
also obstructed the advance ; two streams setting 
back from the river protected either flank, while 
batteries crowned every commanding height. All 
these, however, were defences independent of the 
fort itself, which was three-quarters of a mile back 
of the first breastworks. It stood near the river, 
commanding both it and the interior, and mount- 
ed, in all. sixty-five cannon, many of them of large 
calibre. 

Twenty thousand men manned and held this 
strong position. 

Grant appeared before it on the 12th — having 
driven in the rebel pickets — and began to move 
his army to the right and left, towards the river, 
to invest the place, and cut off all avenues of 
escape to the garrison. This was slow work, and, 
strange to say. Grant threw up no intrenchments 
to protect his troops, or serve as rallying points 
in case of a repulse — a neglect he would not, a 
year after, have been guilty of 

Foote, with his fleet, having arrived below the 



FORT DONELSON. 67 

fort before Grant was ready to cooperate with 
him, he advanced to the attack, hoping, with his 
gunboats, to reduce it, as he had Fort Henry. 
But his fleet, after a short, determined contest, 
was driven off, badly crippled. Grant saw at 
once that a delay was now inevitable. He there- 
upon determined to closely invest the place, and 
wait till Foote could repair his losses, so as to coop- 
erate with the movements of the army. McCler- 
nand's division, composed of three brigades, was 
sent to the south, closing in with his right on the 
river, so as to bar all egress to the o-n^rrison in that 
direction, while Gen. Smith held a corresponding 
position below, his left resting likewise on the river. 
Between these two divisions the army stretched 
in a huge semi-circle round the works and the 
fort. 

The rebel commanders, finding themselves thus 
cooped up, saw at once that immediate action 
must be taken, or they would be starved into a 
surrender, and they resolved, by a desperate 
assault all along Grant''s line, to cut their way out 
to the south, towards Nashville. Saturday dawn- 
ed damp and chill, for the ground was covered 
with snow, and the soldiers, roused from their 
wintry couch, moved stiff and shivering to their 
places in the ranks. Grant, in the meantime, had 
repaired on board the flag-ship, to consult with 
the gallant, disabled Foote, and ascertain when 



68 LIFE OF GRANT. 

he would be ready for a combined attack on the 
place. 

At this critical juncture, the enemy moved out 
of his works. The main force, estimated at seven 
to twelve thousand strong, under Pillow, ad- 
vanced against McClernand's right wing. The 
other columns moving against the centre, were 
mere feints to distract Grant's attention, and 
prevent him from succouring McClernand. Her- 
alded by three commanding batteries, attended 
by a regiment of cavalry. Pillow struck the right 
with a force that threatened to sweep it from 
the field. But the brave lUinoians stood man- 
fully up to their work, and the battle had hardly 
commenced before it was at its height. The 
country was Avooded, and covered with underbrush, 
and broken into hollows and ridges, rendering 
a survey of the field impossible. Our lines ex- 
tended for two miles around the fort, and this 
sudden uproar early in the morning, on our ex- 
treme right along the banks of the Cumberland, 
caUed each division into line of battle. Wallace 
was posted next to McClernand, on the top of a 
high ridge, with forests sweeping off to the front 
and rear. 

When the deep and mingled roar of artillery 
and musketry first broke over the woods, Wallace' 
thought McClernand had moved on the enemy's 
works. But the latter was making, instead, des- 



FORT DONELSON. 69 

perate efforts to hold his own against the over- 
whehning numbers that, momentarily increasing, 
pressed his lines, with a fierceness that threatened 
his complete overthrow. Finding, at length, thai 
his troops were giving way, he, at eight o'clock, 
sent off a staff-officer at full speed to Wallace, for 
help. The latter had received orders from Grant 
to hold the position he occupied, in order to keep 
the enemy from escaping in that direction, and 
dared not move ; and so hurried off the courier with 
his despatch to headquarters. But Grant not 
being there, the messenger kept on to the gunboats, 
in search of him. McClemand, wondering that 
no help came, and seeing his lines swinging back, 
despite the heroic efforts of the commanders, 
hastened off another messenger to Wallace, say- 
ing that his flank was turned, and his whole 
division was wavering. Wallace could wait no 
longer to hear from Grant, and immediately des- 
patched Colonel Croft, commanding a brigade, to 
his help. Wallace all this time sat on his horse, 
anxiously waiting to hear from Grant, and listen- 
ing to the steady crash to the right, that made 
the wintry woods resound, when there burst into 
view a crowd of fugitives, rushing up the hill on 
which he stood. The next moment an officer 
dashed on a headlong gallop up the road, shout- 
ing, " We are cut to pieces." Seeing his whole 
line of the third brigade beginning to shake be- 



70 LIFE OF GRANT. 

fore this sudden irruption, he ordered its com- 
mander to move on by the right flank, he himself 
riding at its head to keep it steady. He had not 
gone far before he met portions of regiments in 
full retreat, yet without panic or confusion, calling 
aloud for ammunition. He immediately formed 
his line of battle, and sent off to the left for help. 
The retiring regiments kept on to the rear, a 
short distance, and refilled their cartridge-boxes. 
Scarcely was this new line of battle formed, when 
the rebels, following up their advantage on the 
right, swoojDcd do-svn, confident of victory, full 
upon him. The shock was firmly met, and the 
enemy brought to a pause. Hours had passed, 
in the meantime, in which desperate fighting over 
batteries ; repulses and advances of regiments 
and brigades; shouts and yells, heard amid the 
intervals of the uproar, sweeping like a thunder- 
storm through the leafless woods, out of which 
burst clouds of smoke, as though a conflagration 
was raging below; hurrying crowds in all the 
openings, — combined to make up the terrific scene 
that was displayed that wintry morning on the 
banks of the Cumberland. 

All this time, Grant, miles away and ignorant 
of what was going on, was slowly riding back to 
the army, having finished his consultation with 
the Admiral. 

Suddenly he saw an officer tearing down the 



A BOLD RESOLVE. 71 

road, on a wild gallop, towards him. Reining 
up beside his surprised commander, the latter 
delivered his desj)atch, and in a few words ex- 
plained the critical condition of affairs. Grant 
immddiately put spurs to his horse, but had not 
gone far before he met General Smith, commanding 
the left. From a brief conversation with him, he 
at once comprehended the whole matter, and with 
that sudden inspiration which belongs to true 
genius, told him to get ready for a general assault 
on the enemy's works in his front. He then gal- 
loped on to the vortex of the battle. As he 
advanced, a sight met his gaze that would have ap- 
palled a less iron-willed, self-reliant man. Crowds 
of fugitives covered the fields — even those forma- 
tions that stood firmest were dreadfully disordered 
— ammunition was gone, the dead and wounded 
lay thick around, and discouragement and confu- 
sion were on every side. He had not arrived a 
moment too soon. Although explosions of artil- 
lery, and volleys of musketry, rising out of the 
woods, showed that the conflict was still raging, 
he saw that the force of the blow had been spent, 
and the enemy was exhausted by the tremendous 
effort he had put forth. He knew at once, he said, 
that whichever now first attacked would win, and 
he resolved to break into a furious offensive. True, 
his own losses had been heavy — the troops were 
worn out with the long struggle, and the entire 



72 LIFE OF GRANT. 

army in a disordered condition. But he found 
the haversacks of the rebel prisoners that had been 
captured in the fight packed with rations for three 
days, and instantly saw through the plan of the 
enemy. The bloody contest that had been waged 
since early in the morning was not for victory, so 
that the place might be held, but for escape. Said 
he thoughtfully, " They mean to cut their way out ; 
they have no idea of staying here to fight us." 
Wheeling, he dashed the spurs into his horse and 
galloped back to the left, and ordered Smith to 
move at once on the rebel works. 

It was a bold resolution, to give up in a moment 
the gunboats, which had been the chief reliance — 
abandon the plan of a combined movement, and 
stake every thing on one bold throw. Naj^oleon 
once said, "A battle often turns on a single 
thought." It was so in this case. Grant knew 
from the course the battle had taken all day, that 
the enemy must be weakest at this point, and most 
unprepared for an attack, and in order to keep 
it from being reinforced, he directed McClernand 
— exhausted and shattered as he was — to recover 
his lost ground, piled with his own dead, and 
assault the rebel works on the left fi'om before 
which he had been driven. Wallace commanded 
the assaulting columns, composed of the two bri- 
gades of Colonels Smith and Croft. As the 
brave regiments moved past him, he coldly told 



STORMING THE HEIGHTS. 73 

them that desperate work was before them. In- 
stead of being discouraged by this, they sent up 
loud cheers, and " Forward, forward," ran along 
the ranks. " Forward, then ! " he shouted, in turn. 
Through dense underbrush, over out-cropping 
ledges of rock, across open stony places, up the 
steep acclivity, swept by desolating volleys, they 
boldly charged, or climbed like mountain-goats. 
Now lying down to escape the murderous volleys, 
then rising with a cheer, they pushed on till they 
got within a hundred and fifty yards of the in- 
trenchments, when the order came to fall back. 

In the mean time Smith was in motion. In 
front of him was an entrenched hill, Avhich com- 
manded the interior of the rebel works. If that 
were reached, the garrison would be uncovered to 
batteries planted on the top, and Smith resolved 
to take it. 

Sendino; a force around to the rio-ht, to make a 
feint, he took three picked regiments — the 2d and 
7th Iowa, and 57th Indiana— to compose the storm- 
ing column, and, riding at their head, ordered the 
advance. As his eye glanced along that splendid 
body of men, he felt they were equal to the bloody 
task assigned them. The bayonet was to do the 
work this time. Mounting the slope with leaning 
forms, those brave troops entered the desolating 
fire, that rolled like a lava-flood adown the height, 
and pressed rapidly upward and onward. Their 
4 



74 LIFE OF GRANT. 

gallant leader moved beside them, with his cap 
lifted on his sword, as a banner to wave them on. 
Grim and silent, with compressed lips and flash- 
ing eyes, they breasted the steep acclivity and the 
blinding, fiery sleet, without faltering for one in- 
stant. They sternly closed the rent ranks as they 
ascended, until at last the summit was gained. 
Then the long line of gleaming barrels came to a 
level together ; a simultaneous flash, a crashing 
volley, a cheer, ringing high and clear from the 
smoking top, a single bound, and they were over 
and in the rebel works. The flag went up, and 
with it a shout of victory that was the death- 
knell of Fort Donelson. Hurrying up his 
artillery and supports, Smith fixed himself 
firmly in position, and awaited the morning 
light to complete the work already more than 
half done. 

That wintrj^ night the troops on the extreme 
right, ignorant of Smith's success, lay down with 
their arms in their hands, on the blood-stained 
snow, weary, and hungry, and cold, yet resolute, 
and prepared for the assault in the morning. 
Smith's heroes also bivouacked on the frozen, 
crimson ground they had so gallantly won, while 
Grant, with his heart relieved of a heavy burden, 
took refuge in a neo;ro hut, to snatch a short rC' 
pose, or ponder on the events of the coming morn- 
ing. He knew that he had been near defeat, but 



THE FLAG OF TRUCE. 75 

he now felt tliat victory was sure, and he longed 
impatiently for the morning to dawn. 

At daylight, the roll of the drum and bugle 
note called the ranks on the right from their frozen 
bivouac, to prepare for the grand final assault. 

Though cold and chill, they sternly closed up 
their thinned ranks on the blood-stained snow, 
while not a heart beat faint. No sublimer specta- 
cle was ever witnessed than those gallant men pre- 
sented, on that Sabbath morning, as they took 
their position in front of the frowning works of the 
enemy. Marching from Fort Henry without 
tents or rations, except such as they could carry 
in their haversacks — exposed for three days and 
nights without shelter or fire, and two out of the 
three to the driving snow or piercing cold, and all 
the time under fire ; yet they stood eagerly waitr 
ing the order to launch themselves on the foe. 

Smith, down the river, was, at the same time, 
training his guns on the devoted garrison, and all 
was ready for the final struggle. At that moment 
Col. Lauman heard the clear note of a bugle, ris- 
ing from out the enemy's works, and turning his 
eye thither, he saw a white flag waving above 
them. A long, loud cheer went up at the sight, 
which, taken up by regiment after regiment, as the 
exciting news travelled along the line, at last 
reached the troops of Wallace, on the extreme 
right, just ready to move to the assault. In a 



76 LIFE OF GRANT. 

moment their caps were in the air, and amid long 
and repeated cheers, the band struck up trium- 
phant airs, making the wintry Sabbath morning a 
scene never to be forgotten. 

During the night the rebel generals had held a 
consultation over their desperate condition, in 
which, after much sharp discussion, it was finally 
decided that Floyd should hand over the com- 
mand to Pillow, and he to Buckner, who should 
surrender the place, while the two former would at- 
tempt to make their escape. When this decision 
was reported to the brigade and regimental offi- 
cers, some were astonished, while others stormed, 
and cursed the renegade commanders. A rebel 
officer thus describes the scene : 

" One said, ' It is mean ! ' ' It is cowardly ! ' 
' Floyd always was a rascal.' 

" ' We are betrayed ! ' ' There is treachery ! ' 
said they. 

" 'It is a mean trick for an officer to desert his 
men. If my troops are to be surrendered, I shall 
stick by them," said Major Brown. 

" ' I denounce Pillow as a coward ; and if I ever 
meet him, I'll shoot him as quick as I would a 
dog,' said Major McLain, red with rage. 

" There were two or three small steamboats at the 
Dover landing. Floyd and Pillow went on board 
of one of them, taking part of the Virginia bri- 
gade with them. This being seen by some of the 



THE SURRENDER. 77 

other troops they became furious and rushed on 
board, crowding every part of the boat. 

" ' Cut loose ! ' shouted Floyd to the captain." 
The ropes were cut, the boats swung into the 
stream, and the fugitives steered for Nashville. 

Soon after the flag of truce was raised, an offi- 
cer appeared bearing the following communica- 
tion from General Buckner : 

Headquarters, Foet Donelson, February 16, 1862. 

SiK : In consideration of all the circumstances gov- 
erning the present situation of affairs at this station, I 
propose to the commanding officer of the Federal forces 
the appointment of commissioners to agree upon terms 
of capitulation of the forces and fort under my com- 
mand, and, in that view, suggest an armistice till 
twelve o clock to-day. 

I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

S. B. BucKjNfEE, Brig.-Gen, C. S. A. 

To Brigadier-General Geant, commanding United States forces 
near Fort Donelson. 

Grant did not want time to consider what an- 
swer to make. His blood -was up, and he would 
wait for no mere formalities or spend time in dis- 
cussing terms, and sent the following short per- 
emptory reply : 

Headqtjaeters, Aemy in the Field, ) 
Camp near Donelson, February 16, 1862. J 

To General S. B. Buckner, Confederate Army : 

Yours of this date, proposing an armistice, and ap- 
pointment of commissioners to settle terms of capitula- 



78 LIFE OF GRANT. 

tion, is just received. I^o terms other than uncon- 
ditional and immediate surrender can he accej>ted. I 
j)ropose to move immediately ujpon your works. 
I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

U. S. Geajjt, 
Brig. -Gen. U. S. A. Commauding. 

Buckner, chagrined, but helpless, saw there was 
no alternative but submit or see the Union sol- 
diers rolling like the sea over his works, and so he 
sent the following note : 

Headquabtees, Dover, Tennessee, Feb. 16, 1862. 

To Brigadier-General Grant : 

Sir : The distribution of forces under my command, 
incident to an unexpected change of commandei*s, and 
the overwhelming force under your command, compel 
me, notwithstanding the brilliant success of the Con- 
federate army yesterday, to accept the ungenerous, and 
un chivalrous terms which you propose. 
I am, Sir, your obedient servant, 

S. B. Buckner, 
Brigadier-General, 0. S. A. 

Grant, smiling significantly at this reflection 
on his generosity and chivalry, mounted his 
horse and rode at once to Buckner s headquarters. 
The meeting was courteous and frank, for they had 
been cadets together at West Point ; and Grant, 
mindful of old times, told the latter that he did 
not desire to dictate any terms, for the mere pur- 
pose of humiliating him, and that the officers 
might retain their side-arms, and both they and 



BREAKFASTS WITH BUCKNER. 79 

the soldiers keep their personal baggage, but 
every thing else must be surrendered. Buckner 
then invited him to breakfast, and, over their 
coffee, victor and vanquished discussed, good- 
naturedly, the operations of the past few days. 
In alluding to the inferior force of Grant, when 
he first advanced across the country towards the 
fort, the rebel general said if he had been in chief 
conimand, the former never would have reached 
it as easily as he did. Grant replied that, if he 
had been, the army w^ould have waited for re- 
inforcements ; "but," he added, "I knew that 
Pillow would not come out of his works and fio-ht 

o 

me, and I told my staff so." He knew the stuff 
that his former comrade was made of, and had 
also some experience in Mexico of the military 
ability of Pillow. 

When, soon after, the prisoners were being put 
on board steamers, to be carried north, Buckner 
asked Grant to take a look at his brigade, which 
had been drilled under his own eye. The latter 
went on board the steamer, and was soon the 
centre of all eyes. Buckner then made his men a 
short speech, in which he praised Grant's kind 
treatment of them, and bade them remember it, 
if, hereafter, the fortune of war should throAv any 
of his soldiers into their power. 

Sixty-five guns, over seventeen thousand small 
arms, and fifteen thousand troops fell into Grant's 



80 LIFE OF GRANT. 

hands, as the result of this victory. The loss of 
the enemy in killed and wounded could only be 
conjectured, while his own was a little over two 
thousand. Probably, it was nearly the same in 
both armies. 

Grant's army, though comparatively so weak 
when he started across the country from Fort 
Henry, had been heavily reinforced, so that, on 
the day of battle, he had in the field twenty-seven 
thousand men. He captured more guns than he 
had in the siege, for he brought along but eight 
light batteries, which were not at all suitable for 
siege operations. 

The victory was the most important one that 
had yet been obtained by our troops, and it elec- 
trified the nation. As the exciting news travelled 
over the land, bells were set ringing, and salvos 
of artillery fired, and men thought the end of the 
rebellion to be near at hand. Grant at once be- 
came a favorite of the people, and his emphatic 
reply to Buckner, '"'' I propose to move iminediately 
upon your worhs^'' was in every one's mouth. It 
was uttered by some not only to show the charac- 
ter of Grant, and to swell his praise, but as a sar- 
casm upon military science. Even the Secretary 
of War, in an absurd letter, used it for this pur- 
pose, and for a while it seemed that no commander 
could retain his position, if he did not throw to 
the wind all rules of war, and, no matter what 



CONGRATULATORY ORDER. 81 

the condition of things might be, "move at once 
upon the enemy's works," wherever found. With 
Grant, it was no rash determination, based 
on mere brute daring, but the dictate of true 
military sagacity. Many afterwards imitated his 
boldness, but, wanting his wisdom, made sad fail- 
ures, and sacrificed thousands of lives in vain. 

The day after the battle, he issued the following 
congratulatory order to his soldiers : 



Headquarters, District of West Tennessee, ) 
Fort Donelson, February 17, 1862. ) 

The General commanding takes great pleasure in 
congratulating the troops of this command for the tri- 
umpli over rebellion gained by their valor, on the 13th, 
14th, and 15th instant. 

For four successive nights, witliout shelter, during 
the most inclement weather known in this latitude, 
they faced an enemy in large force, in a position chosen 
by himself. Though strongly fortified by nature, all 
the additional safeguards suggested by science were 
added. "Without a murmur this was borne, prepared 
at all times to receive an attack, and with continuous 
skirmishing by day, resulting ultimately in forcing the 
enemy to surrender without condition. 

The victory achieved is not only great in the efiiect 
it will have in breaking down rebellion, but has secured 
the greatest number ot prisoners of war ever taken in 
any battle on this continent. 

Fort Donelson will hereafter be marked in capitals 
on the map of our united country, and the men who 
fought the battle will live in tlie memory of a gratefiil 
people. By order, 

U. S. Grant, 
Brig.-Gcn. Commandiag. 
4* 



82 LIFE OF GRANT. 

The fall of Fort Donelson opened Nashville 
to our forces. When the disastrous news reached 
the city, the quiet Sabbath morning was turned 
into a scene of the wildest excitement. The last 
news from the fort was a despatch from Pillow, 
the day before, saying "The day is ours," and 
hence all fears were quieted. Its surrender, there- 
fore, fell on the people, who were quietly assem- 
bling for church, like a thunderbolt at noon-day 
from a cloudless sky. Faces turned pale with 
affright, men dashed wildly on horseback through 
the streets, which soon Avere thronged with ex- 
cited men and women. Every available vehicle 
was at once seized ; and the terrified inhabitants, 
flinging in the few articles they could conveniently 
carry, hurried off southward, for in imagination 
they already heard the tread of Grant's advancing 
legions. The public stores were thrown open, 
into which the rabble rushed for pillage ; and for 
twenty-four hours a scene of terror and lawless- 
ness was witnessed that baffles description. 

With the fall of Donelson, not only fell Nash- 
ville and Bowling Green, but Columbus itself 
became untenable, and was soon after evacuated. 

Thus, without the aid of the fleet. Grant, by 
one grand and terrible blow, had broken down 
the whole line of the enemy's defence, from the 
Mississippi to the Alleghany mountains, and 
shoved it beyond the State of Kentucky. 



CHAPTER V. 

DISGEACE OF CillANT. 

Halleck's Neglect — His unjust and abusive Despatch to "Wash- 
ington — Failure of his Attempt to injure him with the Gov- 
ernment — Grant ordered to Fort Henry — Halleck accuses 
him of Acting Unbecoming an Officer — Puts Smith in his Place 
at the head of the Army of the Tennessee — Continues his Per- 
secutions — Noble Conduct of Grant — Denies the Charges made 
against hira — Asks to be relieved from Command till his Con- 
duct can be investigated — Sudden Change in Halleck's Treat- 
ment — Attempts to vindicate his Conduct— His Duplicity — 
Unsuspected by Grant — General Morgan treated in a similar 
manner — Magnanimity of Grant and Smith — Eumors of Grant's 
Arrest. 

But, from some cause or other, Halleck refused 
to acknowledge the merits of Grant in this bril- 
liant movement. His congratulatory order to 
the troops Avas cold and restrained, giving Grant 
no especial praise, while, at the same time, he 
spoke of the necessity of discipline and good 
order, in a way that implied censure. Whether 
he was vexed that Grant had refused to stay and 
fortify himself at Fort Henry, and, acting on his 
o^Yn responsibility, had attacked and taken Fort 
Donelson, and thus practically demonstrated his 
superiority in the art of war ; or whether angry 



84 LIFE OF GRANT. 

at being so suddenly eclipsed by a subordinate, it 
is impossible to say. 

At all events, he sent the following remarkable 
telegram to Washington, which admits of no pal- 
liation : " Smith, by his coolness and bravery at 
Fort Donelson, when the battle was against us, 
turned the tide and carried the enemy's outworks. 
Make him a major-general : you can't get a better 
one. Honor him for this victory, and the country 
will applaud." Here a commander-in-chief urges 
the promotion of a subordinate, who had only 
gallantly carried out the orders of his superior, 
to major-general, while the commander himself 
was but a brigadier. It was a most wicked and 
shameful thrust, but it failed of success, for the 
Secretary of War recommended instead Grant to 
that rank, and he was made a major-general, his 
promotion to date from the day of the surrender 
of the fort, and "the whole country'''' did "ap- 
plaud " the act. 

On the 27th of the month, Grant went to 
Nashville to consult with General Buell, who had 
arrived there with his army from Bowling Green, 
on future operations. The very next morning he 
returned, and immediately advised Halleck of it. 
On the subsequent day he w^rote again to Hal- 
leck's chief of staff, stating he had forwarded to 
the former all information of his movements, the 
condition of the enemy, and his own wants. On 



UNJUST CENSURE. 85 

the same day, Halleck sent a despatch directing 
him to move his army back to Fort Henry, pre- 
paratory to an advance up the Tennessee. Two 
days after Grant received it, his columns were in 
motion. But the day previous, without waiting 
to hear from him, Halleck sent the following tele- 
gram to Washington, which, coming from any other 
man than he, would be considered a curiosity in 
its way. He says, " I have had no communica- 
tion with General Grant for more than a week. 
He left his command without my authority, and 
went to Nashville. His army seems to be as 
much demoralized by the victory of Fort Donel- 
son, as was that of the Potomac by the defeat of 
Bull Run. It is hard to censure a successful 
general immediately after a victory, but he richly 
deserves it. I can get no returns, no reports, no 
information of any kind from him. Satisfied 
with his victory, he sits down and enjoys it with- 
out any regard to the future. I am worn out 
and tired by this neglect and inefficiency. C. F. 
Smith is almost the only officer equal to the emer- 
gency." 

Viewed in its various bearings, in what a piti- 
ful light does this present Halleck. In the first 
place, it is such a serious offence for Grant, after 
opening Nashville, to run up and see what the 
movements of the enemy are, and what next is to 
be done, that the former must telegraph the fact 



86 LIFE OF GRANT. 

to Washington in a tone of complaint. In the 
second place, he declares that the victorious army 
is as much demoralized as the army of the Poto- 
mac at Bull Run, when he has never seen it, and, 
as he affirms, can get 7io report, no information 
of any kind with regard to it. In the third place, 
after charoino; Grant with beins; too active because 
he went to Nashville to see if he could be of any 
service, going even beyond the limits of his com- 
mand, he, in the next breath, accuses him of sit- 
ting do^vn and " enjoying his victory,"" regardless 
of the future. To cap the climax of this absurd, 
petulant, false accusation, he, in his warm and 
comfortable house in St. Louis, complains of being 
" tilled and ivoni out," while the man who has 
been winning victories amid hail and snow, is 
"sitting doioi'''' and enjoying himself 

But having thus poisoned the minds of those at 
Washington, he obtained the requisite liberty to 
strike, and the very next day after this secret stab, 
he sent a despatch to Grant, ordering him to turn 
over the command of the expedition planned for 
the upper waters of the Tennessee to Smith, and 
remain himself at Fort Henry. Complaining 
that Grant was sitting still, he now determined to 
see that he should sit still, and see his brave troops, 
whom he had led to victory, defile away from him 
under another commander. But instead of utter- 
ing any complaint. Grant contented himself with 



HALLECKS PERSECUTIONS. 87 

denying that he had ever disobeyed orders, and 
adds, "In conclusion, I will say, that you may 
rely on my carrying out your instructions in every 
particular to the best of my ability." Calm and 
serene under his disgi^ace, he is just as ready to 
help his commander as though the latter were not 
plotting his ruin. Without envy or mere per- 
sonal ambition, he congratulates Smith on his 
promotion, and says that " he deserves it," and he 
will give him all the aid in his power. Unselfish 
and noble, he thinks only of his country's welfare. 
Halleck, however, seems to be under some baleful 
influence, and continues his persecutions with a 
pertinacity that is inexplicable. Not content with 
disgracing him and leavmg him to do simply 
garrison duty, he, two days after he had removed 
him from command, sent another rebuke, reitera- 
tinoj his old charo;es. 

Resting only a short time, he returns again to 
his fault-finding, as if he thought the repetition of 
his accusations would establish their truth. To 
all of these. Grant replied in the same calm, 
courteous spirit. In answer to the charge that 
he failed to report the number of troops under 
his command, he, in his quiet, straightforward, 
truthful way, says, " You had a better chance of 
knowing my strength whilst my command was 
surrounding Fort Donelson, than I had. Troops 
were reporting daily by your orders, and luere 



88 LIFE OF GRANT. 

immediately assigned to brigades!'^ This was a 
home thrust, though probably not intended for 
one, but only as a vindication of himself. It 
showed that the looseness was at headquarters, in 
not keeping account of the troops sent forward. 

Grant, at the first, when he found himself 
falsely accused, asked to be relieved from duty, 
and he now repeated the request, and after say- 
ing, " There is such a disposition to find fault 
with me that I again ask to be relieved from duty 
until I can be placed right in the estimation of 
those high in authority." 

The simple, unpretending, unsuspicious man- 
ner in which he behaves during all this trying 
period, when he was so unjustly assailed, and 
finally placed in disgrace, brings out in bright re- 
lief some of the most attractive points in his char- 
acter. Unaccustomed to the tricks and cabals of 
politicians — totally ignorant in himself of those 
petty, lo^v ambitions of which rivals are made — 
apparently w^holly unable to comprehend a char- 
acter which can cover up its duplicity with hypoc- 
risy, he has a simple, almost child-like faith in 
truth that is marvellous. At first sight, it seems 
that such an honest, unsuspecting object of perse- 
cution can stand no chance against unscrupulous 
men who work in the dark. He was not, however, 
to be laid aside — Providence had more and greater 
work for him to do. 



A SUDDEN CHANGE. 89 

Halleck having, after the 3d of March, for 
nearly a week kept up a continuous fire on Grant, 
either directly or through Washington, suddenly 
turned round, and told him that he could not be 
relieved from command. He says, with an 
effrontery that would have taken away the breath 
from a less calm, immobile man than Grant, 
" There is no good reason for iV No " reason " 
for relieving a man from command until he can 
vindicate himself, when he has persistently dis- 
obeyed orders — violated the laws of the service in 
leaving his command without liberty — been guilty 
of " marauding " — allowed his victorious army to 
be more demoralized than a routed one, and amid 
such chaos and amid all the great preparations go- 
ing on around him, sits quietly down and refuses 
to do any thing ! No reason for relieving him ! 
One would think, on the contrary, if all these 
charges were true, there was quite reason enough 
for suspending, if not for cashiering him. 

After he had shown himself so petulant, and 
eager to prefer any and every charge against 
Grant, without stopping to investigate the truth 
of them, one naturally inquires what could 
have caused this sudden revolution in his con- 
duct. There had been no trial, no investiga- 
tion, no new developments. Such a sudden 
exhibition of criminal leniency right on the top 
of such eager haste to condemn and disgrace, 



90 LIFE OF GRANT. 

deserves some explanation. Did the department 
commander discover that Grant was too deeply 
implanted in the favor of the Secretary of War 
and the President, to be thus summarily disposed 
of — or did he begin to fear that he had acted in 
a way that would not stand the scrutiny of a 
court of inquiry, and the blow he had aimed 
at an innocent head might have a disagreeable re- 
bound ? Any other General would have refused 
to be satisfied -svith this retraction, and insisted on 
a court of inquiry, where his vindication might 
be complete. But Grant, truthful himself, be- 
lieved in the sincerity of the statements of others, 
and with that self abnegation which has made him 
so conspicuous in this generation of self-seekers, 
replied that he had thought, after the severe cen- 
sures heaped upon him, that he could not " serve 
longer without a court of inquiry ; but your tele- 
gram of yesterday places such a different phase 
upon my position, that I will again assume com- 
mand, and give every effort to the success of our 
cause. Under the worst circumstances, I would 
do the same." No matter how deep the disgrace 
they might unjustly inflict on him, he would 
" give every effort to the success of the cause." 
Evidently for the purpose of making Grant be- 
lieve that he had acted under advices from Wash- 
ington, and not from his own suggestions and 
from inclination, he sent him the following corre- 



CURIOUS COINCIDENCE. 91 

spondence, which on the face of it places Halleck 
not only in a fair, curious coincidence, but mag- 
nanimous light. The first is a letter from the 
Adjutant-General, sent apparently without any 
suggestion received fi'om Halleck. 

Headquarters of the Army, Adjutant-General's Office. 

"Washington, March 10, 1867. 
f" 
Maj.-Gen. H. W. Halleck^ U. 8. A., Commanding Dept. of the Mis- 
souri, St. Louis: 

It has been reported that, soon after the battle of Fort 
Donelson, Brigadier-General Grant left his command 
without leave. By direction of the President, the Sec- 
retary of War directs you to ascertain, and report, 
whether Gen. Grant left his command at any time with- 
out proper authority, and, if so, for how long ; whether 
he has made to you, proper reports and returns of his 
forces ; whether he has committed any acts which were 
unauthorized, or not in accordance with military subor- 
dination or propriety, and if so, what. 

L. Thomas, Adjutant-General. 

Notice here, that the " reports " to which he 
alludes are, one and all, precisely the charges made 
in Halleck's extraordinary letter, which we gave a 
few pages back. The latter now sees, evidently, 
that he has gone too far, and returns the follow- 
ing answer, which he sends to Grant, to show that 
he had no hand in these serious charges — that 
what he did was from orders, which he had re- 
ceived from Washington, and that, instead of un- 
justly accusing him and persecuting him, he had 
nobly stepped between him and the authorities at 



92 LIFE OF GEANT. 

"Washington, and, unsolicited, had vindicated his 
conduct and saved him from a court of inquiry : 

Headquarters Dept. of the Missouri, 
St. Louis, Mo., March 15, 1862. 
Brig. -Gen. Thomas, Adjutant- General of the Army ^ Washington: 

In accordance with your instructions of the 10th inst., 
I report that Gen. Grant and several officers of high 
rank in his command, immediately after the battle of 
Fort Donelson, went to Nashville without my authority 
or knowledge. I am satisfied, however, from investiga- 
tion, that Gen. Grant did this from good intentions, and 
from a desire to subserve the public interests. Not be- 
ing advised of Gen. Buell's movements, and learning 
that Gen. Buell had ordered Smith's division of bis 
(Grant's) command to Nashville, he deemed it his duty 
to go there in person. During the absence of Gen. 
Grant, and a part of his general officers, numerous 
irregularities are said to have occurred at Fort Donel- 
son. These were in violation of the orders issued by 
Gen. Grant before leaving, and probably, under the cir- 
cumstances, were unavoidable. Gen. Grant has made 
the proper explanations, and has been directed to re- 
sume his command in the field ; as he acted from a 
praiseworthy although mistaken zeal for the public ser- 
vice in going to Nashville, and leaving his command, I 
respectfully recommend that no further notice be taken 
of it. There never has been any want of military sub- 
ordination on the part of Gen. Grant, and his failure to 
make returns of his forces has been explained as result- 
ing partly from the failure of Colonels of regiments to 
report to him on their arrival, and partly from an inter- 
ruption of telegraphic communication. All these irregu- 
larities have now been remedied. 

H. W. Halleck, Major- General. 

Grant, evidently, was completely deceived by 
this correspondence, which Halleck transmitted to 
him. Unsuspicious of double-dealing, and touched 



A NOBLE MAN DECEIVED. 93 

by the apparent magnanimous conduct of his su- 
perior, he replied : "I most fully appreciate your 
justness, General, in the part you have taken, and 
you may rely upon me to the utmost of my capacity 
for carrying out all your orders." He felt, as he 
said in the same letter, that " he had not neglected 
a single duty," but he was willing to let the past 
go. We can only conjecture what would have 
been his feelino-s had Halleck sent with this cor- 

o 

respondence, his own letter, dated March 3d (just 
a week before) to the General-in-chief at Wash- 
ington. It is a shallow cunning that prompts to 
such a course as this, and yet leaves the proof of 
it on record where it is certain, sooner or later, to 
come to the light. 

This treatment, however, is in perfect harmony 
with that which General Morgan, who held Fort 
Cumberland, received. Compelled to evacuate the 
place because Halleck could not or would not 
either reinforce him or furnish him supplies, he 
carried his little army for two hundred miles 
through a desert country, making one of the most 
memorable marches of the war. Although -svith 
ten thousand men, the place had been held in 
the face of starvation, and the assembling of 
a hundred thousand troops around it, yet, as 
its evacuation made the campaign for the occu- 
pation of Knoxville and East Tennessee a fail- 
ure, Halleck wished the blame to rest on other 



94 LIFE OF GRANT. 

shoulders than his own, and so ordered an inves- 
tigation of the matter, hoping to be able to place 
it on Morgan's. But General Wright, whom he 
had appointed to conduct it, made a report com- 
pletely exculpating Morgan. Yet with this report 
before him, Halleck, in his annual report to Con- 
gress, intimates that the evacuation was unne- 
cessary, and adds that he has " ordered an inves- 
tigation." This cominor to the notice of General 
Morgan, he was indignant, and immediately wrote 
to Halleck, demanding a Court of Inquiry, or 
Court Martial. The latter, in reply, said that he 
had directed General Wright to make an investi- 
gation, and if "that was satisfactory," no further 
steps would be necessary, and he would be "re- 
lieved from all blame." Morgan wrote at once to 
Wright, on the subject, when he learned to his 
astonishment that the latter had made the inves- 
tigation, finished his report, and sent it in the 
October previous to the report of Halleck to Con- 
gress, in which he says he has " ordered an inves- 
tigation," and months previous to his letter to 
Morgan, in which he reasserts the action he had 
taken, as if the matter was still in abeyance, and 
had not, on the contrary, been completed the fall 
before. 

In what striking contrast to this does the con- 
duct of both Smith and Grant appear. When the 
former was placed over Grant, the latter, instead 



RUMOR OF HIS ARREST. 95 

of indulging in unkind feelings, wrote to Smith a 
congratulatory letter, expressing his pleasure at his 
advancement, and saying, " Any thing you may 
require, send back transports for, and if within my 
power you shall have it." On the other hand, 
when Smith heard that Grant had been restored 
to his old position, he writes a congratulatory let- 
ter in turn, expressing his pleasure that he once 
more had his old command, from which, he says, 
"he was so unceremoniously and unjustly strick- 
en down." 

This whole matter has been ^\Tapped in obscu- 
rity, and all kinds of reports concerning it obtained 
circulation, and the truth has never been fully 
known until brought to light by Col. Badeau. One 
of these reports, which was generally credited, was 
that Grant, soon after the capture of Fort Don- 
elson, was placed under arrest by orders from 
Washington. Various reasons were given for this 
summary action, and one was, that Grant was 
intoxicated on board the flag-ship while the battle 
was rao-ino;. 

We now, however, can trace the origin of this 
generally believed strange report. Halleck, in 
a letter to him, in which he endeavors to show 
that he was innocent of the disgrace inflicted 
on him, says, that he had received an order from 
McClellan, to arrest him. The question naturally 
arises, why was not that order, if issued, obeyed ? 



96 LIFE OF GEANT. 

But Col. Badeau says, that no such order is on 
record or can be found in the War Department, 
and further, that the Secretary of War never 
heard that such an order was issued. As it never 
was executed — has never seen the light, and can- 
not be found in the place where it ought to be, 
and no remembrance of such an important trans- 
action remains in the War Department, we must 
be allowed to express a doubt if McClellan ever 
gave such an order at all. 

Ignorant of all this plotting and persecution, 
the people were sounding Grant's praises the length 
and breadth of the land, and the swelling tide of 
public feeling was being felt in Washington, and 
threatened to sweep away all this nicely balanced 
machinery and curious network, that had been 
woven in the dark. It was hazardous to attempt 
to stem this popular current, and Halleck doubt- 
less felt so, when he concluded to abandon his per- 
secution of Grant, and outwardly, by restoring 
him to his command, placed affairs on a friendly 
footing. 



CHAPTER VI. 

SHILOH. 

Position of the Army on the Tennessee — Located at Pittsburgh 
Landing and Savannah — Reasons for it — Grant restored to his 
command, and takes np his Headquarters at Savannah — Buell 
ordered to join him with forty thousand men — Grant forbidden 
to give battle — Concentration of the Enemy at Corinth — Threat- 
ening Demonstrations of the Enemy— Accident to Grant — 
Fierce and unexpected onset of the Enemy — The Battle — Sur- 
render of Prentiss— Gallantry of Sherman — Arrival of Grant 
on the Battle Field — His orders to Nelson and Wallace to push 
forward to his aid — They fail to arrive — The Army driven back 
to the River — Arrival of Buell — The Gunboats — Night — A 
Storm — BuelFs army got into position — Grant sleeps on the 
field— The Second Day's Battle— Grant heads a charge — The 
Victory — Correspondence with Beauregard — Causes of First 
Day's Defeat — Defence of Grant — Outcry against him. 

While Grant was in disgrace, Smith, whom 
Halleck had put in his place, proceeded up the 
Tennessee with the army to cut the great railroad 
near it at Corinth ; but accomplishing nothing of 
importance, returned to Pittsburgh Landing, on 
the western bank of the river, and there disem- 
barked a part of his troops. The original and 
proper plan was to land at Savannah, a few miles 
lower down, on the opposite side of the river, 

where the remaining portion of the army did en- 
5 



98 LIFE OF GRANT. 

camp. The reason given for this change was, that 
a rapid movement inland, in the desired direction, 
could be more easily made from that bank than 
from the other; as the transportation of troops 
across would necessarily consume a considerable 
time. This advantage, however, would not weigh 
against the peril of having the army divided by 
the river. Probably the fact that the bluff on 
which the landing was made was admirably fitted 
for a defensive position, was another reason. Two 
streams, one north and the other south of it, 
flowed almost at right angles into the Tennessee, 
thus rendering it an easy matter for Smith to pro- 
tect his flanks — in fact, from the flooded state of 
the banks at this time, making an attack, except 
in front, almost impossible. Even in this latter 
direction nature had helped to defend this excel- 
lent position ; for Owl Creek ran along a portion 
of it parallel to the Tennessee river, and emptied 
nearly at right angles into Snake Creek, which 
bounded the bluff on the north. But Corinth lay 
right west, within striking distance, and common 
prudence required that to make the position se- 
cure, strong defences should be thro^vn up. This, 
however, was not done — a neglect the more singu- 
lar, since Corinth, the objective point of the 
campaign, and the key to the whole railroad sys- 
tem connecting Tennessee and Mississippi, was 
known to be occupied by the enemy in force. 



CONCENTRATES HIS TROOPS. 99 

Halleck, as we have stated, restored Grant on 
the 13th of March to his command, and four days 
after the latter took up his headquarters at Sa- 
vannah, about nine miles below Pittsburg Land- 
ing. Nearly half of the army was at the former 
place, and Grant saw at once the peril of having 
the two portions nine miles apart, and separated 
besides by a broad and swollen river. Hence 
within an hour after his arrival he ordered Smith 
and McClernand, who commanded the force at 
Savannah, to proceed at once to Pittsburg Land- 
ing. In the mean time, Halleck, hearing of the 
concentration of rebel troops at Corinth, had di- 
rected Buell, in Central Tennessee, to effect a 
junction with Grant at Pittsburg Landing. His 
army numbered nearly forty thousand, and the 
distance from Columbia, his starting-point, to the 
Tennessee river, was some nmety miles. But it 
was early spring, and the streams being flooded 
made it impossible to calculate with any accuracy 
how much time it would take to make the march. 

In the mean time, Halleck telegraphed Grant to 
avoid battle unless it was forced upon him — in 
short, to act solely on the defensive, until the arri- 
val of Buell. This was contrary to the judgment 
of Grant, who thought a blow should be struck 
at once, before the concentration of the enemy 
could be effected. 

For nearly three weeks the anny lay idle here. 



100 LIFE OF GRANT. 

while the hostile forces were rapidly accumula- 
ting. By the second of April, Johnston, their 
commander, saw that he must strike before the 
arrival of Buell, of whose approach he was made 
aware by his scouts, if he wished to succeed, and 
he began to feel our line with his skirmishers. 

On the 4th, a heavy force appeared in our front, 
and for a time a serious engagement seemed immi- 
nent. Several rebel prisoners were taken, who said 
that the " Yankees would catch hell soon." Still, 
this was thought to be an idle threat, and no 
notice was taken of it. The next day, Grant rode 
out to the front and investigated the matter. 
Both he and Sherman came to the conclusion 
that there was no appearance or probability of an 
immediate battle. Grant did not return to the 
landing until after dark. It was raining at the 
time, and his horse slipping on a log, fell upon 
him, which lamed him for several days, and 
caused him a good deal of suffering. 

The demonstration of the enemy this day was 
not confined to our forces at Pittsburg Landing. 
Lewis "Wallace, with Smith's division, five miles 
farther down stream, reported a heavy force in 
his direction. The truth was, the enemy was 
making a reconnoissance with view to an attack. 
The next day, a heavy column of cavalry pushed 
boldly up to Sherman's front, yet still he did not 
think any thing serious was intended, while Grant 



vc^ 



THE ONSET. 101 

felt stronger by tlie arrival of Nelson's division 
of Buell's army at Savannah. He had been very 
anxious for the arrival of these troops, and now 
directed Nelson to take position at a point about 
five miles from Savannah, and hold himself ready 
to march at a moment's notice. He himself de- 
signed the next day to remove his own head- 
quarters to Pittsburg Landing — putting it off till 
then at the request of Buell, who had informed 
him that he would arrive at Savannah that day. 

The next morning, however, came the battle. 
Johnston had learned by his reconnoissance that 
our forces had thrown up no entrenchments, but 
that the flanks were so well protected by streams 
and ravines, that an attack could not be made 
there. Hence he determined to move right down 
in front, in one overwhelming charge. Sherman's 
division was in advance, near the Shiloh church. 
On his left, but farther back, McClernand was 
posted. Then came Prentiss, more up to Sher- 
man's line, while on the extreme left was Stuart, 
commanding a separate brigade of Sherman's di- 
vision, and covering the crossing of Lick Creek. 
Hurlbut was in reserve. 

The constant skirmishing for the last few days 
had put the officers on the alert, and though it 
was only just daybreak, the horses of many Avere 
saddled w^hile they sat down to breakfast. Every 
thing seemed quiet, when suddenly, as a clap of 



102 LIFE OF GRANT. 

thunder, the onset came. Prentiss first caught 
the fury of the bursting storm, which soon swept 
along the entire front. Not cautiously, as if feel- 
ing their way, did the heavy columns come on, 
but in dark masses, like fast following waves, 
broke over the camps. A scene of indescribable 
confusion followed. From the very outset, the 
battle on our part was without plan or cohesion, 
while the rebel general held his army completely 
in hand, and hurled it with skill, boldness, and 
irresistible power, on any point he wished to 
strike. Prentiss, in the centre, after striving in 
vain to bear up against the flood, was surrounded 
and compelled to surrender, with some three 
thousand or more of his troops. Sherman and 
McClernand fought with their accustomed brav- 
ery, but they could hold only a portion of their 
troops to the deadly work. Stuart was cut off 
from the main army, and compelled to fight his 
own battle. Cavalry charged hither and thither 
over the tumultuous field, riding down our disor- 
dered troops ; while our batteries were swept by 
the hostile flood, and the broken, disjointed army 
was borne steadily back toward the Tennessee. 
Sherman, awake to the peril of the army, clung to 
each position with the tenacity of death, and rode 
amid the hail-storm of bullets as though he had 
forofotten he had a life to lose. Horse after horse 
sunk under him; he himself was struck again 



THE BATTLE. 103 

and again ; and yet he not only kept the field, 
but blazed like a meteor over it. At noon of that 
Sabbath day, he was dismounted — his hand in a 
sling, — and bleeding, giving directions to his chief 
of artillery, while it was one incessant crash and 
roar all around him. Suddenly he saw, to the 
right, his men giving way before a cloud of rebels. 
"I was looking for that," he exclaimed. The 
next moment the battery he had been placing in 
position opened, sending death and destruction 
into the close-packed ranks. The rebel com- 
mander, glancing at the battery, ordered the cav- 
alry to charge it. Seeing them coming down, 
Sherman quickly ordered up two companies of 
infantry, which, pouring in a deadly volley, sent 
them to the right about with empty saddles. The 
onset was arrested, and our troops rallied with 
renewed courage. Hurlbut moved up with his 
reserves, and gave Sherman breathing space. 

In the mean time, in the very heat of battle, 
Grant came on a driving gallop to the front, and 
at once complimented Sherman on the gallant 
stand he had made. Sherman, in reply, asked for 
cartridges. " They are on the way," replied Grant. 
Knowing from the rapid and incessant firing, that 
he had heard ever since daybreak, that ammuni- 
tion must be giving out, he had ordered it forward 
as he hurried to the front. 

He and his stafi^ at Savannah, were taking an 



104 LIFE OF GRANT. 

early breakfast, preparatory to riding out to meet 
Buell, who was near at hand, when the first roar 
of artillery arrested his attention. At first he 
thought it was only a repetition of the skirmishing 
that had been going on for several days. But as 
the thunder swelled louder and louder, and peal 
after peal shook the shores, he knew that a battle 
was raging, and crying, " to horse," galloped down 
to the landing. Before starting, however, he de- 
spatched a hasty note to Buell, telling him that 
heavy firing up the river showed that the army 
was attacked. To Nelson, he sent orders to move 
his division up opposite Pittsburg Landing with- 
out delay. Pushing up the river himself in a 
steamer, he stopped at Crump's landing just long 
enough to tell Wallace, in person, to be ready to 
march at a moment's notice. 

As the boat touched the shore at Pittsburg 
Landing, the din of battle was terrific, and already 
fugitives were flying from the field. When he 
reached the front and saw how terrific was the 
onset, and that his army was wavering, he at once 
sent an aid as fast as he could ride, to Crump's 
landing, five miles distant, with orders to Wallace 
to hurry his division forward to the field. To Nel- 
son he wrote, " Hurry up your command as fast 
as possible. Push forward — boats will be in 
readiness to transport you across." Having done 
this he addressed himself to the task of keeping 



ANXIOUS MOMENTS. 105 

the heavy masses that surged so fiercely up against 
his shaking line at bay, till those reinforcements 
could arrive. The field was wooded, Avith patches 
of cultivation between, so that it was impossible 
for him to get any commanding view of it, and 
manoeuvre the army as a whole. In fact, there 
was no time for it. The rebel attack was so steady 
and persistent, that each division simply attempted 
to hold its ground. Grant, smoking his cigar with 
imperturbable coolness, moved from pomt to point, 
alono; the front, ffivino; such directions as the emer- 
gency seemed to require. 

As the decimated army, maintaining a deter- 
mined though shattered front, still kept falling 
back towards the river, Grant cast his eye anxiously 
in the direction where the heads of Nelson*'s and 
Wallace's columns should appear, but nothing met 
his gaze but crowds of stragglers fleeing to the 
rear. Wallace, at least, should have been there 
long since, but strange to say, his division was 
wandering about lost^ though only five miles from 
the field of battle, whose uproar loaded the Sab- 
bath air. 

Though nearly half of his army had melted 
away — either prisoners, killed, or straggling — the 
other half still faced the foe, and met his fierce, 
determined onsets as the rock meets the wave. 
But this could not last long — he must have rein- 
forcements, or the brave heroes that refused to fly, 



106 LIFE OF GRANT. 

but, with every backward step, dealt a staggering 
blow, would soon be overpowered; and hearing 
that another of Buell's divisions had reached 
Savannah, he sent a staff officer, with desperate 
speed, to him, with the order: "You will move 
your command with the utmost despatch, to the 
river at this point, where steamboats will be in 
readiness to transport you to Pittsburg." But the 
peril deepening every moment, he could not wait 
his return, but sent off another officer with the 
following still more urgent order : " Commanding 
officer, advance forces, Buell's army, near Pitts- 
burg: The attack on my forces has been very 
spirited from early this morning. The appearance 
of fresh troops in the field now, would have a 
powerful effect, both by inspiring our men and 
disheartening the enemy. If you will get upon 
the field, leaving all your baggage on the east 
bank of the river, it mil be more to our advantage, 
and possibly save the day to us. The rebel forces 
are estimated at over one hundred thousand men. 
JMy headquarters will be in the log building on 
the top of the hill, where you will be furnished with 
a staff officer to guide you to your place in the 
field." Matters were getting desperate, and he 
counted the moments when the forces, so pressingly 
needed, would arrive. Still none came ; but about 
the middle of the afternoon, Buell, accompanied 
only by his staff, rode up the bluff. Beaching 



A LAST EFFORT. 107 

Savannah, and finding Grant gone, while inces- 
sant explosions of artillery shook the shore, he 
knew a terrific battle was raging, and leaving the 
division he was accompanying to follow on, hur- 
ried forward alone. The sio-ht that met his o-aze 
as he landed, astonished him. The banks were 
black with fugitives, who crowded down to the 
water's edge for safety. His first impression was 
that Grant's army was gone beyond recovery unless 
it could be placed across the river, and wait till 
his OAvn could come up, and he asked, " What 
provisions have you made for a retreat?" Grant 
replied, " I don't despair of whipping them yet." 
Buell now sent off officer after officer, to hurry up 
the tired columns. In the mean time, the battle 
raged with increased ferocity; while still back 
toward the river, yet still facing the foe, slowly re- 
tired the diminished columns. Althou2;h Johnson 
had fallen, he was succeeded by Beauregard, who 
saw that but one more success was necessary to 
drive our army into the Tennessee — carry the ravine 
that covered Sherman's left, and thus in fact the 
landing itself This done, and the battle would 
be over. Grant, too, saw this, and put forth a last 
desperate effort to prevent it. The gunboats Tyler 
and Lexington could now join in the fight, and 
their ponderous shells went screaming up this 
ravine, bursting with the sound of thunder amid 
the astonished enemy, and his frantic attempts to 



108 LIFE OF GRANT. 

clear the ravine were without avail. In the mean 
time, Nelson's division had crossed and formed in 
line of battle, and poured in a volley. The enemy, 
exhausted by the protracted struggle, and now 
met by new foes, sullenly retu'ed, while the shad- 
OAvs of evening stole over the landscape. Soon, 
darkness wrapped the two armies, that sank to 
rest on the torn and trampled field. 

Grant now felt the heavy burden, that had in- 
creased with every revolving hour, lift from his 
heart. It was evident that nothing more could be 
done till morning ; and by that time he would 
have forty thousand fresh troops in the field, while 
his adversary could bring none. That morning, 
he determined, should witness a terrible retribu- 
tion for the disaster of the day just ended. 

Troops that had marched all day were now, 
•without rest, crossed over, and every preparation 
made to recommence the struggle at daylight. 

Stretching far back in the gloom lay the battle 
field, covered with the dead and dying, uncared- 
for — alone with the night. To make it still more 
appalling, a heavy storm arose, while ever and 
anon the inky clouds were ribbed with blazing 
shells that the gunboats sent at short intervals 
within the enemy's lines. These, at length, set 
the woods on fire, that, flashing up here and there, 
cast a baleful light on the murky landscape. The 
rain fell in torrents, the only messenger of mercy 



A GLOOMY NIGHT. 109 

to the wounded, burning with thirst, that covered 
the ensanguined field. 

Grant, with his strong nature fully aroused, 
could not think of rest, but amid the driving storm 
passed from division to division, visiting each 
commander in turn, and leaving specific orders for 
the attack, which he had determined should com- 
mence with the morning light. His directions 
were, at daybreak to commence with a heavy 
skirmish line, and then, leaving no reserve, ad- 
vance with the entire force and sweep the field. 

At length all his arrangements were completed, 
and near midnight he rode slowly back to the 
landing, and dismounting, stretched himself on 
the ground, and with his head resting on a stump, 
composed himself to sleep. The pitiless rain 
beat on him, drenching him to the skin, but he 
only thought of the coming victory. He sought 
no shelter, but slept as his brave troops slept, un- 
covered to the storm. 

The battle recommenced at daylight, and al- 
though wearied out with the struggle of the day 
before, and outnumbered more than two to one, 
the enemy fought bravely, and stubbornly con- 
tested every inch of ground. Reluctant to give 
up the victory that had been almost within their 
reach, they slowly, sullenly retired o^^er the field 
they had won. But the success on our side was 
as steady as it had been on that of the other the 



110 LIFE OF GRANT. 

day before. Our camps were soon once more in 
our possession, and the disciplined battalions 
of Buell pusbed the enemy back until be was at 
last forced to retreat to Corintb, leaving Brecken- 
ridge, with his division, as a rear guard. Colonel 
Badeau relates the following incident, which is 
new. He says : 

" Near the close of the day. Grant met the First 
Ohio regiment marchino- towards the northern 
part of the field, and immediately in front of a 
position which it was important to take at that 
particular juncture ; another regiment to the left 
was fighting hard, but about to yield — had, in fact, 
given way. Grant saw the emergency, and instantly 
halted the passing force on the brow of a hill, the 
enemy lying in a wood at its base ; he changed 
the direction of the First Ohio, and himself or- 
dered it to charge, in support of the yielding bat- 
talion. The men recognized their leader, and 
obeyed with enthusiasm, and Grant rode along 
with them in the line of battle, as much exposed 
as any private in the ranks. The retreating 
troops on the left took courage at this sight ; they 
stopped their backward movement, closed up 
their wavering ranks with cheers, and the two 
regiments swept the enemy at once from the cov- 
eted spot, thus capturing one of the last important 
positions in the battle of Shiloh." 

Grant, who never seems to know fatigue, wished 



RESULT OF THE BATTLE. Ill 

to press the retreating rebels still further, but his 
own troops were too much exhausted, while 
McCook and Crittenden, whom he appealed to, re- 
plied that their soldiers had marched all the day 
before, and been on the move a great part of the 
night, and now having fought all day were in no 
condition to pursue, especially as the rain was fall- 
ing in torrents, making the fields very heavy; 
and so he had reluctantly to abandon his purpose, 
and turn his entire attention to the care of the 
wounded, of which there were over eight thousand 
of his own, besides those which the enemy had 
left behind in their retreat. His total loss was 
twelve thousand two hundred and seventeen. 
That of the enemy nearly 11,000. 

The next day Beauregard, under a flag of truce, 
sent the following communication to Grant : 

HeADQUAETEES, AemT of the AtlSSISSIPPI, ) 

Monday, April 8^ 1862. \ 

Sir : At the close of the conflict yesterday, my forces 
being exhausted by the extraordinary length of time 
during which they were engaged with yours on that 
and the preceding day, and it being apparent that you 
had received and were still receiving reinforcements, I 
felt it my duty to withdraw my troops from the imme- 
diate scene of conflict. 

Under these circumstances, in accordance with usages 
of war, I shall transmit this under a flag of truce, to ask 
permission to send a mounted party to the battle-field 
of Sliiloh, for the purpose of giving decent interment to 
my dead. 

Certain gentlemen wishing to avail themselves of this 



112 LIFE OF GRANT. ' 

to remove the remains of their sons and friends, I must 
request for them the privilege of accompanying the 
burial party ; and in this connection, I deem it proper 
to say, I am only asking what I have extended to your 
own countrymen, under similar circumstances. 
General, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

G. T. Beauregard, 

General CommandiDg. 
To Major-General U. S. Geant, commanding 

United States forces near Pittsburg, Tenn. 

To this Grant replied as follows : 

Headquaetehs, Aemy in the Field, ) 
PiTTSBCEG, April 9, 1862. j 

General G. T. Beauregard, commanding 

Confederate Army of the Mississippi, 
Monterey, Tenn. : 

General: Your despatch of yesterday jnst received. 
Owing to the warmth of the weather, 1 deemed it ad- 
visable to have all the dead of both parties buried im- 
mediately. Heavy details were made for this purpose, 
and it is now accomplished. There cannot therefore be 
any necessity of admitting within our lines the parties 
you desire to send on the grounds asked. I shall al- 
ways be glad to extend any courtesy consistent with 
duty, especially so when dictated by humanity. 
I am, General, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 

U. S. Grant, Major-General. 

Much has been written about this battle, and 
of a very contradictory character. It will be read- 
ily seen by the above account, that Grant can in 
no way be held responsible for the location of the 
arnjy on the east side of the river, for which he 



BAD MANAGEMENT. 113 

was SO severely blamed. It is true, lie became 
responsible for its remaining in that dangerous 
position, but it must be remembered that its re- 
moval would be an implied censure, both on his 
friend Smith, whom he had superseded, (an old 
soldier, and his commandant at West Point,) and 
also on his superior, Halleck, who had made no 
objection to this disposition of the army. Under 
these circumstances, we do not see how he could 
well have done differently; besides, neither he 
nor Sherman expected an attack before the 
arrival of Buell. There was a grave error com- 
mitted by the commanders in front, in not throw- 
ing up works, and constructing abatis from the 
trees, of which there was abundance on the spot. 
Had this been done, the disasters of that day 
would, in all human probability, have been 
averted. It is useless to attempt to explain away 
or excuse this neglect. The attempt to prove 
that the battle might have been renewed the next 
day, with any prospect of success, but for the 
arrival of Buell, is simply absurd; for, with a 
fresh army of forty thousand men, we only re- 
gained the field, nothing more. All the great 
military names, and all the military science in 
the country, can never make such an assertion 
an historic fact. Desaix did not save Napoleon 
at Marengo, more than Buell did Grant at 
Shiloh. 



114 LIFE OF GRANT. 

The outcry raised against Grant, for being, as 
it was asserted, surprised and so severely beaten 
the first day, was great. West, it was terrific. 
Congressmen and Governors demanded his remo- 
val ; and it seemed, for a time, as if he would be 
swept away by the flood of denunciations. All 
sorts of charges were preferred against him. 
The more absurd they were, the more they 
were believed. 

Grant, however, had one fi'iend in Mr. Wash- 
burn, the Member of Congress from Illinois, 
who defended him in a noble speech. 

Afterwards, when Grant had reached the pin- 
nacle of fame, his friends went just as far in the 
other extreme, and asserted, and tried to prove 
that, in the first place, it was a capital plan to 
have the Tennessee river divide the forces ; equal- 
ly good tactics not to throw up breastworks. In 
the third place, there was no surprise, although 
officers were at breakfast when the onset came ; 
and in the last place, that, although Buell's ar- 
rival was very opportune, it was not of vital con- 
sequence. 

The effort to make a man just as perfect and 
infallible in judgment, at the outset of his career, 
as he was after years of actual experience, may 
show kindly feelings, but not common sense. 
Grant was not like so many of the ignorant, con- 
ceited coxcombs who had charge of our troops, and 



COMMON SENSE. 115 

believed they possessed all needed military knowl- 
edge, before they ever set a division in the field. 
Like all great men, he could rise to the circum- 
stances in which he was placed, but would not 
pretend he never made a mistake. 



CHAPTER VII. 

COEINTH, lUKA, AND VICKSBURG. 

Halleck takes Ctief Ooramand — Again disgraces Grant — Uncom- 
plaining Conduct of the latter — Abused by Correspondents of 
the Press — His calm Reply to one — His quiet, dignified 
Behavior — Offers Halleck Good Advice — Insulted for it — His 
Sharp Retort — Evacuation of Corinth — An Excellent Illus- 
tration of Halleck's Strategy — Halleck called to Washing- 
ton — Last Attempt to disgrace Grant — The latter makes 
Corinth his Headquarters — Order respecting Fugitive Slaves 
— Severe Order to the People of Memphis — Receives a threat- 
ening Letter— Battle of luka— Of Corinth— Sends Sherman to 
Attempt the Capture of Vicksburg — Causes of his Failure — 
Plans his great Expedition against the Stronghold. 

Halleck shared in the hostile feeling against 
Grant, and though he did not remove him from 
the head of his troops, he himself repaired to the 
field and took chief command, and, in reorgani- 
zing the army, gave the latter a position which 
was regarded by all the officers as one of disgrace. 
He was nominally second in command ; but the 
army was divided into three corps, commanded 
by Thomas, Pope, and Buell, with the reserve 
under McClernand, while Grant's Army of the 
Tennessee was distributed between the right wing 
and the reserve, thus actually placing him under 
Thomas and McClernand. Though these com- 
manders were Grant's subordinates, yet Halleck 



NEWSPAPER CORRESPONDENTS. 117 

ignored him in issuing his orders, and even 
moved his troops without his knowledge. Nothing 
could be more painful than this position, yet he 
bore it without a murmur, quietly doing his duty, 
and leaving it for time, that "sets all things even," 
to vindicate him. 

The camp was crowded with newspaper cor- 
respondents, who, having nothing else to do, criti- 
cised or praised the various commanders according 
to their own inclinations. Grant came in for the 
most unsparing abuse, yet he uttered no com- 
plaint, made no defence. Once, and once only, 
he broke the uninterrupted silence which he 
seemed determined to maintain. One of the cor- 
respondents had denounced him with most unjust 
severity. The article came under Grant's eye, 
and while smarting under its false, unscrupulous 
aspersions of his character, he met the -writer. 
Instead, however, of denouncing him as he de- 
served, he simply said, "Your paper is very 
unjust to me, but time will make it all right. I 
want to be judged only by my acts." 

Says another correspondent, " When the army 
began to creep forward, I messed at Grant's head- 
quarters with his chief of staff, and around the 
evening camp-fires I saw much of the general. 
He rarely uttered a word upon the political bear- 
ings of the war ; indeed, he said little upon any 
subject. With his eternal cigar, and his head 



118 LIFE OF GRANT. 

thrown to one side, for hours he would silently sit 
before the fire, or walk back and forth with eyes 
upon the ground, or look at our whist-table, now 
and then making a suggestion about the play, &c., 
&c. At almost every general headquarters one 
heard denunciations of rival commanders. Grant 
was above this ' mischievous, foul sin of chiding.' 
I never heard liim speak unkindly of a brother 
officer." 

When Halleck had completed his preparations, 
he began to advance toward Corinth. If Grant 
had not used the spade and shovel enough, the 
former now made up for it, and seemed deter- 
mined to dig his way into Corinth. If he had 
staid away and left Grant in chief command, the 
latter would have been in the place before he got 
half way there. Grant never would have been six 
weeks advancing fifteen miles, as Halleck was. 
He, however, made no suggestion, offered no ad- 
vice, for he was not consulted. Once, and once 
only, he broke his uniform silence, and that was 
when the army finally got before the place. Being 
at headquarters when the probability of the enemy 
evacuating it was under consideration, his anxiety 
overcame his long reticence, and he advised that 
an assault should be made by our extreme right, 
in front of which he said he believed the enemy s 
defences to be weak ; and when they were carried, 
to swing up the left and sweep the field. Hal- 



halleck's victory. 119 

leek, in his pompous way, ridiculed the sugges- 
tion, and politely intimated that it would be time 
for him to give his opinion when it was asked. 
This*was more than Grant could patiently endure, 
and he replied so sharply and sarcastically, that 
he expected to be called to account for it, but the 
result so demonstrated the justice of his opinions, 
that Halleck was quite willing to let it pass unno- 
ticed. 

At last, on the 30th of May, Halleck declared 
that the enemy was about to attack, and drew up 
his army of seventy thousand men, and planted his 
batteries, to await the coming shock. But it never 
came, and when the army finally advanced, nothing 
but an empty town and wooden guns were found 
to capture. Beauregard had not only got off with 
his army, but with all his war material — in fact, 
every thing he wanted to carry away. Blank 
faces looked on each other as the tidings travelled 
down the line, while a faint smile lighted up the 
countenance of Grant, at this illustration of Hal- 
leck's grand strategy. He saw as clearly as any 
one the importance of seizing great strategic 
points, but he knew that the mere occupation of 
points in such a vast and diversified country as 
ours, would never end the war. Armies must be 
taken, as well as places. He was too slow once 
(at Fort Henry), but ever after he captured men 
as well as strategic points. With Fort Donelson, 



120 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Vicksburg, and E/ichmoDd, he took whole ar- 
mies. 

When the mighty host of Halleck entered the 
deserted works of Corinth, Grant rode over to the 
defences opposite our right to see if they were 
as weak as he had imagined. Actual observation 
proved the correctness of his judgment, and he 
saw, with mortification, what a splendid victory 
had in all probability been lost to the Union cause. 

After a pursuit of the enemy, which proved 
barren of results, Halleck broke up his army to 
secure some more strategic points, and finally, in 
July, was called to Washington, to take the place 
of McClellan, where he only repeated over again 
the blunders he had committed West. His last 
act, before leaving, was to offer the command 
of the Army of the Tennessee to Col. Al- 
len, a quartermaster, who had the good sense 
to decline it. It was a fitting culmination to 
his career West, that his last act should be an 
attempt to further disgrace the only commander 
who had shed lustre on his administration, and 
won victories, the honor of which he was not 
averse to share. 

Grant, however, retained his command, and 
was directed to make Corinth his headquarters. 
But he was unable to initiate any movements 
against the enemy, for two divisions of his army 
were taken from him and given to Buell, who was 



A SEVERE ORDER. 121 

endeavoring to advance to Chattanooga. His 
chief occupation was to hold the railroad running 
north from that place and Bolivar, to Columbus 
— a kind of campaigning not at all suited to one 
of his aggressive nature. He was more fitted to 
ope^i communications, than to protect those which 
others had opened. He remained here, however, 
two months, watching Van Dorn and Price, who 
constantly hovered around him. 

While here, he issued an order, directing that 
fugitive slaves, coming within his lines, should be 
employed in the quartermaster's, subsistence, and 
engineer s departments — also, when by such em- 
ployment a soldier might be saved to the ranks of 
the army — as teamsters, cooks, hospital attendants, 
and nurses. 

Memphis having fallen before our gunboats, 
came also within his jurisdiction, and caused him 
no little trouble. The inhabitants, thouoh con- 
quered, continued their treasonable practices, and 
kept up a constant communication and traffic with 
the enemy South. Ascertaining this, and finding 
that his leniency only provoked more daring acts 
of hostility, he at length issued the following 
severe order : 

District of "West Tennessee, Office Peovost-Maeshal Gen'l, ) 
Memphis, Tenn., July 10, 1862. \ 
The constant commnnication between the so-called 
Confederate army and their friends and sympathizers in 
the city of Memphis, despite the orders heretofore issned, 



122 LIFE OP GRANT. 

and the efforts to enforce them, induced the issuing of 
the following order : 

The families now residing in the city of Memphis of 
the following persons, are required to move south be- 
yond the lines within five days of the date hereof: 

First. All persons holding commissions in the so -called 
Confederate army, or who have voluntarily enlisted in 
said army, or who accompany and are connected with 
the same. 

Second. All persons holding office under or in the 
employ of the so-called Confederate Government. 

Third. All persons holding State, county, or munici- 
pal offices, who claim allegiance to said so-called Con- 
federate Government, and who have abandoned their 
families and gone South. 

Safe conduct will be given to the parties hereby 
required to leave, upon application to the Provost- 
Marshal of Memphis. 

By command of Major-General Grant. 

District of West Tennessee, Office of the Provost- I 
Marshal General, Memphis, Tenn., July 11, 1862. J 

4«- -X- * * * * 

In order that innocent, peaceable, and well-disposed 
persons may not snifer for the bad conduct of the guilty 
parties coming within the purview of Special Order No. 
14, dated July 10, 1863, they can be relieved from the 
operation of said order No. 14, by signing the following 
parole, and producing to the Provost-Marshal General, 
or the Provost-Marshal of Memphis, satisfactory guaran- 
tees that they will keep the pledge therein made : 

PAEOLE. 

" First. I have not, since the occupation of the city 
of Memphis by the Federal army, given any aid to the 
so-called Confederate army, nor given or sent any 
information of the movements, strength, or position of 
the Federal army to any one connected with said Con- 
federate army. 



A THREATENING LETTER. 123 

" Second. I will not, during the occupancy of Mem- 
pliis by the Federal army, and my residing therein, op- 
pose or conspire against the civil or military authority 
of the United States ; and I will not give aid, comfort, 
or encouragement to the so-called Confederate army, 
nor to any person cooperating therewith. 

" All of which I state and pledge upon my sacred 
honor." 

By command of Major-General Grant. 

William S. Hilltek, Provost-Marshal General. 

He also suspended the Avalanche paper for pub- 
lishing treasonable articles, and finally permitted 
it to appear again, only on the condition of the 
withdrawal of the editor who had written them. 

His stern treatment of hostile citizens awakened 
the bitterest feeling against him, and he received 
threats of vengeance, of which the following let- 
ter is a fair example: 

SiNATOEiA, July 16, 1862. 

U. S. Gkant: 

Sir : "We have seen your infamous and fiendish proc- 
lamation. It is characteristic of your infernal policy. 
* * We had hoped that this war would be conducted 
upon the principles recognized by civihzed nations. 
But you have seen fit to ignore all the rules of civilized 
warfare, and resort to means which ought to and would 
make half-civilized nations blush. If you attempt to 
carry out your threat against the property of citizens, 
we will make you rue the day you issued your dastardly 
proclamation. If we can't act on the principle of lex 
talionis, in regard to private property, we will visit 
summary vengeance upon your men. You call us gueril- 
las, which you know is false. We are recognized by 
our Government ; and it was us wlio attacked your 
wagons at Morning Sun. We have twenty-three men 



124 LIFE OF GRANT. 

of yours, and, as soon as you carry out your threat 
against the citizens of the vicinity of Mornino; Sun, your 
Hessians will pay for it. You shall conduct this war 
upon proper principles. We intend to force you to do 
it. If you intend to make this a war of extermination, 
you will please inform us of it at the earliest conve- 
nience. We are ready, and more than willing, to raise 
the " black flag." There are two thousand partisans 
who have sworn to retaliate. If you do not retract 
your proclamation, you may expect to have scenes of 
the most bloody character. We all remember the man- 
ner in which your vandal soldiers put to death Mr. 
Owens, of Missouri. Henceforth our motto shall be, 
Blood for blood, and blood for property. We intend, 
by the help of God, to han^ on the outskirts of your 
rabble, like lightning around, the edge of a cloud. 

We don't intend this as a threat, but simply as a 
warning of what we intend to do in case you pursue 
your disgraceful and nefarious policy towards our citi- 
zens, as marked out in your letter of recent date. 
Eespectfnlly, 

Geo. E. Merkitt. 

Grant fortified Corinth, and erected works near- 
er the town, so that it could be held by a smaller 
army than the one which occupied it under Beau- 
regard. 

The enemy in the meantime kept him con- 
stantly on the alert, and finally, in September, 
Price suddenly pounced upon luka, only twenty 
miles from his headquarters. Murphy, the com- 
mander, gave it up without striking a blow in its 
defence. Added to this threatening movement, 
Van Dorn was only four days' march from him 
in the southwest. He at once determined to 



^ BATTLE OF CORINTH. 125 

crush Price before Van Dorn could form a junc- 
tion with him. Generals Ord and Rosecrans, with 
eight or nine thousand troops each, were therefore 
ordered to move by different routes on the place. 
Kosecrans had a sharp fight with the enemy, but 
owing to delays and misunderstandings the two 
forces did not act in conjunction, as Grant had 
planned and directed, and Price got off with his 
army. 

Grant now put Posecrans in command of Cor- 
inth, making Jackson his own headquarters, as a 
point more convenient to communicate with his 
distributed command. This was on the 23d of 
September. A few days after, he learned that 
the rebel forces had effected a junction, and under 
Van Dorn and Price, were movins; on Corinth. 
On the 3d of October they appeared before the 
place, and though at first Posecrans was driven 
back to his works on the north side of Corinth, he 
at last, with his army of nineteen thousand, over- 
whelmed and shattered into frag-ments the rebel 
forces, nearly forty thousand strong — thanks to 
the strong fortifications that Grant, with great 
forecast, had previously thrown up there. His 
department being thus relieved from immediate 
danger, and reinforcements arriving in the latter 
part of the month, he was anxious to take the of- 
fensive, and proposed to Halleck to attempt the 
capture of Vicksburg. The gunboats above, had 



126 LIFE OF GRANT. 

opened the Mississippi river down to this place, 
while Farrasfut's fleet had cleared it below. Be- 
tween Halleck, however, who seemed to have no 
fixed opinion, and political management at Wash- 
ington, affairs did not move on smoothly, and for 
a while seemed in an inextricable tangle. But 
at length they assumed shape, and Sherman with 
four picked divisions was ordered to embark on 
board steamers, and planting himself suddenly 
before Vicksburg carry it by assault, while Grant 
moved inland, in the rear of it, to prevent reinforce- 
ments being thrown into the place. Sherman set 
out on the 20th of December, landed his troops, 
and moved to the assault. But in the meantime 
the shameful surrender of Holly Springs, eight 
miles in Grant's rear, with its garrison and stores, 
by which his only line of communication with the 
north was cut off, brought him to halt, and thus 
enabled the enemy to reinforce Vicksburg to any 
extent. 

Sherman, ignorant of this, hurled his brave 
troops against the works ; but found instead of a 
weak garrison a powerful army to oppose him. 
Repulsed with heavy slaughter, he was compelled 
to reembark his army. McClernand supersed- 
ed him, when the army and fleet moved against 
Arkansas Post, on the Arkansas river, and took 
it with its garrison, stores and arms. 

The grand expedition against Vicksburg was 



PREPARATIONS. 127 

now planned, and Grant's department being en- 
larged so as to cover the Mississippi river to 
this place, he concentrated his army, and gather- 
ed together his munitions of war, preparatory to 
the herculean task which he knew was before 
him. He arrived at Young's Point on the 29th 
of January, and assumed command in person. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

ABOVE VICKSBURG. 

Situation of Vicksburg — Difficulty of reaching it — Attempt to get 
below it by a Canal — Sickliness of the Camp — Visit of one of 
the Sanitary Commission— Aided by Grant — His Solicitude for 
the Comfort of the Soldiers — A Flood — 'Failure of the Canal — 
The Eed Kiver Eoute — Abandoned — Attempt on the east Side 
of the River, by Moon Lake — Narrative of the Expedition sent 
through it — Its Abandonment — A Fourth Attempt by Steele's 
Bayou — Its Difficulties — Portei"'s Account of it — Its Abandon- 
ment. 

Grant now had a well-appointed army of some 
fifty thousand men under him, but the grand 
difficulty was, to get them within striking distance 
of Vicksburg. The Mississippi is a very crooked 
stream, winding in and out, often turning almost 
directly back and flowing northerly in its course. 
Just above Vicksburg it wheels short about to 
the left, and runs north-esi&t for some five miles, 
when it abruptly turns back and flows south-east 
This of course makes a long tongue of land, pro- 
jecting from the west side, corresponding in shape 
with the bend of the stream. This projection is 
low, compared with the high blufi*s of Vicksburg, 
so that batteries mounted on it would be perfectly 
commanded by those occupying the high ground 



THE CANAL. 129 

ojDposite. Hence, the place was safe from any 
attack that could be made from the west side of 
the river. It must be approached on the west side, 
or not at all. Its height rendered it impregnable 
to the gunboats, that could effectively reach only 
the water batteries. It therefore was evident that 
it could be assailed only by moving an army down 
from the north, or up from the south, and thus get 
in its rear. But north of Vicksburg, the high bluffs 
run northeast for twelve miles, to the Yazoo River, 
where they terminate in the commanding eminence 
called Haines** Bluff. This whole elevated range 
was strongly fortified. Haines'' Bluff, if once 
taken, would give a foothold from which an army 
could work its way along the ridge to Vicksburg. 
Hence, its seizure was the first thino; thouo;ht of 
and attempted, but Sherman's failure demonstra- 
ted that this must be given up. The only remain- 
ing course left, therefore, was to try to get south of 
the city, and move up behind it from that direction ; 
but as guns of the heaviest calibre commanded the 
channel for miles, the army could not be carried in 
transports past it. Hence, the first thing that 
suo-orested itself in this dilemma, was to cut a 
canal across this low tongue of land, wide and 
deep enough to float steamers through. 

The country here was flat and s^^^ampy, which 
made it seem feasible. This had been commenced 
some time previously, but it was neither wide nor 

6* 



130 LIFE OF GRANT. 

deep enough to admit the water from the Mis- 
sissippi, and had been abandoned. To the open- 
ins: and enlaro-ement of it Grant's attention was 
first directed, in accordance with orders from Hal- 
leck, who said that " the President attached much 
importance" to it. Four thousand soldiers, be- 
sides negroes, were at once set to work. In the 
mean time, the low, marshy ground on which the 
troops were compelled to encamp, produced dis- 
ease, which swept off, or rendered unfit for duty, 
a great number. They could not even bury their 
dead in the neighborhood of their encampment. 
The levee, a high embankment of the Mississippi, 
that separated them from the stream, furnisbed 
the only dry ground, and this was ridged, as far 
as the eye could reach, with soldiers' graves — a 
sad and gloomy spectacle to then" comrades below, 
who thus saw themselves hedged in by the dead. 
Every thing, however, was done for the health and 
comfort of the men that foresight and care could 
accomplish. A lady,^' sent by the Sanitary Com- 
mission, visited the camp and hospitals at Young's 
Point, to see if any thing more could be done. She 
obtained an intervicAV with Grant, who spoke 
freely of the sanitary condition of the army, and 
said he had perfect confidence in its administra- 
tion, but added that he wanted every thing done 
for the comfort of the men, that could be, and 

* Mrs. A. H. Hoge, author of " The Boys ia Bhie." 



CARE FOR THE SOLDIERS. 131 

offered her every facility in his power to enable 
her to carry out her benevolent designs. Look- 
ing at every thing in a practical, common-sense 
light, he did not care whether the good was 
done through the regular military organiza- 
tions or not, so that the troops were made more 
comfortable. She told him she would like some 
cotton, to make "comfortables" for the soldiers, 
to keep them warm in the damp, chilly atmosphere 
to which they were exposed. He immediately 
sat down and ^vrote an order for five bales. A 
tug was placed at her disposal, and she was carried 
wherever she wished to go. After finishing her 
investigations, she returned to Grant to make her 
report to him. Among other things, she said she 
had discovered that incipient scurvy had com- 
menced in the hospitals at Young's Point, and 
threatened, according to the reports of the sur- 
geons submitted to her, to become wide and 
sweeping in its ravages, and that it could be 
arrested only by a fi:'ee supply of vegetables and 
acids. Grant immediately gave an order for 
the transportation of any needed amount of 
vegetables from the North ; saying, quietly, that, 
under the circumstances, "onions and potatoes 
were indispensable to the taking of Vicksburg." 

When about to leave, she said: "Well, Gen- 
eral, what of Vicksburg ? What shall I say when 
I return?" He paused a moment, in thought. 



132 LIFE OF GRANT. 

and then replied: "Madame, Vicksburg is ours, 
and its gay^rison out prisoners. It is only a ques- 
tion of time. I want to take it ivitli as little loss 
of life as possible.'''' This confident opinion was 
not based on any strong faith in the success of the 
canal, for he always doubted it. It was originally 
constructed by Gen. Williams, in 1862, but when 
the levee was cut, the water did not pour through 
it. Grant had, therefore, a cut made farther up 
the river, tapping the original canal, but starting 
at a point where the current struck the bank more 
strongly and directly. For two months the sol- 
diers toiled on to complete it, while the country 
waited and grumbled. But just as success seemed 
probable, and this branch cut had almost reached 
the main canal, a sudden freshet carried away the 
dam at the upper end, and the swollen waters rush- 
ing in with great violence, tore over and through 
the banks, crushing down all barriers in its mad 
flow, and turning the whole peninsula into a 
marshy lake. Horses were swept away, and 
drowned — soldiers scattered, pell mell, in every 
direction, to save their lives — leaving all their tools 
and machines to be borne away or submerged in 
the flood, and thus the labor of weeks was totally 
destroyed. In the mean time, the enemy, having 
learned what was going on, planted batteries to en- 
filade the canal, so that this project, on the comple- 
tion of which so much had been anticipated, had to 



A NEW PLAN. 133 

be abandoned. Grant had put so little faith in the 
success of this canal that, the very next day after 
he assumed command in person, he gave orders 
to have another one cut from the Mississippi to 
Lake Providence, which lay only a mile from the 
shore, and connecting by a series of bayous and 
streams with the Red River, which last stream 
enters the Mississippi between Natchez and Port 
Hudson. This was to enable him, in case the first 
canal failed, to cooperate with Banks — an object 
that the government had very much at heart. 
McPherson was set to work on this, but after seve- 
ral weeks' labor, it also was abandoned. For a time, 
it was supposed by some men of ardent imagina- 
tions, that it was going to change the whole course 
of the mighty Mississippi, clear to the Gulf of 
Mexico, and thus leave New Orleans an inlandtown. 
But its turbid current swept on in its old channel, 
and Grant was at last compelled to abandon all 
hope of getting below Vicksburg on the ivest side 
of the river. It shows how thoroughly he had 
studied the subject, and estimated the difficulties 
of the task, by his having several different routes 
surveyed at the same time, so that if one failed 
there should be no delay in trying another. 

Besides the two plans wdiich had now been tried 
and abandoned, a third one, before they were 
tested, had been matured. If he failed on the 
Avest side, he determined to try the east side, and 



134 LIFE OF GRANT. 

for this purpose, had what was called the Yazoo 
Pass surveyed by Lieut.-Col. Wilson. 

A few miles below Helena, and about a mile 
from the river, lies Moon Lake, once the bed of the 
Mississippi. A narrow and crooked bayou for- 
merly led into this, through which light craft 
sometimes reached the Yazoo — for Moon Lake 
connects with the Coldwater river, which flows into 
the Tallahatchie, which, in turn, effects a junction 
with the Yallabusha — the two forming the Yazoo. 
The distance by this route was some two hun- 
dred and fifty miles. The short cut, however, 
from the Mississippi into Moon Lake, had been 
closed up by the State, as, in times of freshets, the 
water poured through it in such volume that it 
overflowed the surrounding country. 

The levee that shut it up was cut on the 2d 
of February, and the water rushed through into 
the lake,* cutting a channel in two days, wide 
and deep enough to admit the largest steamers. 
The rebels, however, who were on the watch for this 
very movement, now began to barricade the tortuous 
channel beyond, with trees and rafts, at every avail- 
able point. In one place, this tangled net- work 

* The plan and main direction of this route may be understood 
by referring to the map giving that of Steele's bayou. Both routes 
would take the army into the Yazoo above Haines' Bluff, The 
only difference was—this one begun up the Mississippi — struck 
down farther east, and reached the Yazoo higher up than the last 
one undertaken. 



A DIFFICULT ENTERPRISE. 135 

of logs and trees extended over a mile in solid mass. 
Many of the trees were of gigantic size — weigh- 
ing twenty tons or more, which, according to Col. 
Badeau's account, " had to be hauled out entire 
upon the shore by strong cables, while a few of 
the most buoyant were cut in pieces and fastened 
along the banks." To add to the difficulties, the 
rapid rise of the water, from the crevasse at the en- 
trance, submerged the entire country, except along 
a very narrow strip of land near the shore. The 
men, in parties of about five hundred, were thus 
obliged to work in the water, as well as during 
almost incessant rains. The barriers, however, 
being removed, and a heavy growth of overhang- 
ing timber cut away, the distance from Moon Lake 
to the Coldwater was finally cleared. But, while 
Grant's forces were thus diligently engaged in 
opening one end of the pass, the enemy had gain- 
ed time to securely fortify below. 

On the 15th of February, however, a way was 
open to the Tallahatchie, and Brigadier-General 
Ross, with forty-five hundred men, was ordered 
into the pass. He embarked on twenty-two light 
transports, preceded by two iron-clad gunboats, 
and a mosquito fleet, as the light- armored craft; 
suitable for this navigation was called. Lieuten- 
ant-Commander Watson Smith commanded the 
naval force. The difficulty of procuring light 
transports delayed Boss over a week, but the com- 



136 LIFE OF GRANT. 

bined fleet entered the pass on the 24th of Feb- 
ruary, and reached the Coldwater, twenty-five 
miles from the Mississippi, on the 2d of March. 
The Coldwater is over a hundred feet wide, and 
runs through a dense wilderness, for nearly all its 
course. The Tallahatchie is a stream of similar 
nature, and, from its width and depth, no longer 
susceptible of obstruction by the enemy. Thirty 
miles below the mouth of the Coldwater, the Tal- 
lahatchie affords free navigation for boats two 
hundred and fifty feet long. When once the ex- 
pedition reached these rivers, a great part of its 
difficulties would, it was hoped, be past. The 
naval commander moved cautiously, running but 
little faster than the current by daylight, and ty- 
ing his boats to the shore after nis-htfall, so that 
the expedition did not reach the lower Tallahatchie 
till the 10th of March. This long passage of two 
hundred and fifty miles, through an almost un- 
broken forest, was made without the loss of a man. 
The country being overflowed, the river- banks 
could not be approached in any force by guerillas 
or sharpshooters. 

Wilson now reported the practicability of the 
route as a line of important military operations, 
and Grant determined to prosecute his entire 
campaign, if possible, in this direction. The idea 
was to reach the Yazoo river, above Haines' bluff, 
with the whole army; the distance from Milli- 



UNLOOKED-FOR OBSTRUCTIONS. 137 

ken's Bend would have been nearly nine hundred 
miles. At first, only a single division of troops, 
under Brigadier-General Quimby, was sent to the 
support of Boss ; but, shortly afterwards, McPher- 
son, with his whole corps, and an additional divis- 
ion from Hurlbut''s command (at Memphis), was 
ordered into the pass, whenever suitable trans- 
portation could be procured. Great difficulty, 
however, was found in obtaining light-draught 
steamers fit for the navigation of these narrow and 
devious streams ;» and the reenforcements were, 
in consequence, delayed at Helena. 

Near where the waters of the Tallahatchie meet 
those of the Yallabusha, the small to\Yn of Green- 
wood is built ; a little way above this point, the 
former stream sweeps to the east for eight or ten 
miles, and then doubles at the confluence ; while 
the Yazoo, which is formed by the junction, flows 
back again to within five hundred yards of the 
Tallahatchie. At the narrowest part of the neck 
of land thus created, the rebels had hastily con- 
structed, of earth and cotton bales, a line of para- 
pet running irregularly across from the Talla- 
hatchie to the north bank of the Yazoo. This 
work they called fort " Pemberton." This fort 
commanded all the approaches to the Yazoo and 
the Yazoo itself, while it was built on ground so 
low that in front of it the land was covered with 
water for a great distance, thus making a land at- 



138 LIFE OF GRANT. 

tack impossible. Kesort was therefore had to the 
iron-clads, that had worked their difficult way to 
this point. An attack was made by them, at long 
range, on the 11th of March, without any eifect, 
and it was repeated two days after, with the same 
result, while one vessel was crippled by the guns 
of the fort, and some thirty men killed and wound- 
ed. It was plain that some new mode of attack 
must be devised. The fort was on such low 
ground that a rise of two or three feet in the river, 
it was thought, would drown put the garrison, 
and it was resolved to try to effect it. For this 
purpose, the levee of the Mississippi was cut 
eighteen miles above Helena — three hundred miles 
away — in the hope that the water pouring through 
the country would eventually seek the Coldwater 
as an avenue of escape, and produce the needed 
rise of water. The only result, however, was the 
wide-spread inundation of the country, making it 
a vast lake and marsh. This route was plainly 
impracticable, while to make matters worse, the 
enemy began to hurry troops across the country 
by a shorter route, to hem in the boats and troops 
from behind. In this dilemma, for the double 
purpose of making a diversion in favor of Ross, 
the commander, and of reaching the same point 
aimed at (the Yazoo above Haines' Bluff), an- 
other expedition up Steele's Bayou was started. 
This left the Yazoo below Haines' Bluff, and pass- 



A LAST ATTEMPT. 139 

ing through Steele's Bayou into Black Bayou, 
thence to Deer Creek — through Rolling Fork, 
across to the Sunflower, and adown this to the 
Yazoo again. This strange and tortuous route is 
clearly shown in the accompanying map. The 
expedition was under the command of Admiral 
Porter, to be supported by Sherman, who by 
a short cut across the country was to reach a 
point on the Boiling Fork about the same time 
that he did. 

Such inland navigation was never before at- 
tempted by war vessels. The expedition consisted 
of four gunboats, four mortar-boats, and four tugs. 
For thirty miles the little fleet passed up Steele's 
Bayou, then a mere ditch, to Black Bayou, in 
which, for four miles, the trees had to be torn out 
or pushed over by the iron-clads, or the branches 
cut away, when Porter at last reached Deer Creek. 
It took twenty-four hours to make these four 
miles. Some idea of the difiiculties of the route 
may be obtained, when it is remembered that, 
with the utmost exertion of the crews, the vessels 
for twenty-four consecutive hours averaged a speed 
of only about fifty rods an hour. Up this stream 
to Bollino; Fork it was thirtv-two miles. To the 
same point by land, it was twelve miles, over 
which Sherman marched, in order to cooperate 
with him. The channel was narrow and filled 
with small willows, which so retarded the progress 



140 LIFE OF GRANT. 

of the boats that, with his utmost exertions, Por- 
ter could average only about a half a mile an hour. 
At length he got within seven miles of the Roll- 
ino; Fork, from whence there would be water 
enough to the Yazoo. 

The inhabitants were filled with amazement to 
see a war fleet sailing through the heart of a 
country where a vessel of any kind had never be- 
fore been seen, while the negroes flocked in crowds 
to the shore to gaze on the unwonted spectacle. 
But as soon as the Confederate official in that 
section was informed of the expedition, he ga,ve 
the alarm, and ordered the torch to be applied to 
all the cotton along the shore, and Porter was 
lighted on his strange course by a continuous con- 
flagration. 

Negroes were also set to work cuttino; down 
trees to arrest his progress, until troops and guns 
could be brought up. Porter, made aware of the 
movement, pushed on the tug Thistle, with a how- 
itzer on board, which reached the first tree before 
it was cut down. The tug then kept on, to keep 
the way open, but the enemy at length succeeded 
in getting one large tree across the creek, and thus 
for a time stopped all further progress. Being 
now safe fi'om our guns, the negroes, under the 
orders of their masters, continued to chop do'svn 
trees, until it was thought that Porter could make 
no further advance. He, however, by working 



HARD NAVIGATION. 141 

night and day, chopping and sawing them in two, 
or hauling them one side, at length cleared the 
channel, and pushed on until he got within three 
miles of the Rolling Fork. Here he saw smoke 
rising over the tree-tops in the direction of the 
Yazoo, and learned that the enemy was landing 
troops to dispute his passage. He immediately 
sent Lieutenant Murphy, with two boat howitzers 
and three hundred men, to hold Rolling Fork 
until he could reach it with his boats, 

"After working all night," says Porter, "and 
clearing out the obstructions, which were terrible, 
we succeeded in getting within eight hundred yards 
of the end of this troublesome creek ; had only 
two or three large trees to remove, and one appar- 
ently short and easy lane of willows to work 
through. The men being much worn out, we 
rested at sunset. 

" In the morning we commenced with renewed 
vigor to work ahead through the willows, but our 
passage was very slow ; the lithe trees defied our 
utmost efforts to get by them, and we had to go 
to work and pull them up separately, or cut them 
oiF under water, which was a most tedious job. 

" In the mean time, the enemy had collected and 
landed about eight hundred men, and seven pieces 
of artillery (from 20 to 30-pounders), which were 
firing on our field-pieces from time to time, the 
latter not having range enough to reach them. 



142 LIFE OF GRANT. 

" I was also informed that tlie eneni}^ were cut- 
ting down trees in our rear, to prevent communis 
cation by water, and also prevent our escape ; this 
looked unpleasant. I knew that five thousand 
had embarked at Haines' Bluff for this place, 
immediately they heard we were attempting to 
go through that way, and, as our troops had not 
come up, I considered it unwise to risk the least 
thing ; at all events, never to let my communi- 
cation be closed behind me. I was somewhat 
strengthened in my determination to advance no 
further until reinforced by land forces, when the 
enemy, at sunset, opened on us a cross-fire with 
six ov seven rifled guns, planted somewhere off in 
the woods, where we could see nothing but the 
smoke. It did not take us long to dislodge them, 
though, a large part, of the crew being on shore at 
the time, we could not fire over them, or until 
they got on board. I saw at once the difficulties 
we had to encounter, with a constant fire on our 
working parties, and no prospect at present of the 
troops getting along. I had received a letter from 
General Sherman, informing me of the difficulties 
in getting forward his men ; he doing his utmost, 
I knew, to expedite matters. 

" The news of the felling trees in our rear was 
brought in frequently by negroes, who were press- 
ed into the service for cutting them, and I hesi- 
tated no longer about what to do. We dropped 



porter's account. 143 

down again, imsliipped our rudders, and let the 
vessels rebound from tree to tree. As we left, the 
enemy took possession of the Indian mound, and 
in the morning opened fire on the Carondelet, Lieu- 
tenant Murphy, and Cincinnati, Lieutenant Bache. 
These two ships soon silenced the batteries, and 
Ave were no longer annoyed. 

" The sharpshooters hung about us, firing from 
behind trees and rifle-pits, but with due precau- 
tion we had very few hurt — only five wounded by 
rifle-balls — and they were hit by being imprudent. 

" On the 21st, Ave fell in with Colonel Smith, 
commanding Eighth Missouri, and other parts of 
regiments. We Avere quite pleased to see him, as 
I never knew before how much the comfort and 
safety of iron-clads^ situated as Ave were, depended 
on soldiers. I had already sent out behind a 
force of three hundred men, to stop the felling of 
trees in our rear, which Colonel Smith noAv took 
charge of 

"The enemy had already felled over forty heavy 
trees, which Lieutenant-Commander Owen, in the 
Louisville, working night and day, cleared away 
almost fast enough to permit us to meet with no 
delay. 

" Colonel Smith's force Avas not lar^re enough to 
justify my making another effort to get through ; 
he had no artillery, and Avould frequently have to 
leave the vessels in followino- the roads. 



144 LIFE OF GRANT. 

" On the 2 2d, we came to a bend in tlie river, 
where the enemy supposed they had blockaded us 
completely, having cut a number of trees altogeth- 
er, and so intertwined that it seemed impossible to 
move them. The Louisville was at work at them, 
pulling them up, when we discovered about three 
thousand rebels attempting to pass the edge of the 
woods to our rear, while the negroes reported artil- 
lery coming up on our quarters. 

" We were all ready for them, and, when the artil- 
lery opened on us, we opened such a fire on them, 
that they scarcely waited to hitch up their horses. 
At the same time, the rebel soldiers fell in with 
Colonel Smith's troops, and after a sharp skirmish 
fled before the fire of our soldiers. After this we 
were troubled no more." 

Although Porter now met Sherman's advancing 
forces, he saw it would be folly to attempt to re- 
trace his steps, and so the expedition, after having 
sailed over a hundred and forty miles, right through 
plantations and forests, at length found itself once 
more at the starting-point, and the last attempt 
to get around Vicksburgh from the north was 
abandoned, and Grant at once ordered the concen- 
tration of all his forces at Milliken's Bend. 



CHAPTER IX. 

RUNNING THE BATTERIES. 

Grant resolves to run the Batteries with his Fleet — Opposed by his 
OflScers — Boldness of the Resolution — Desperate Character of 
his Plan — Attempt to remove him — Cooperation with Banks — 
The Army marches below Vicksburgh — Running the Batteries — 
A thrilling Spectacle — Success — Grand Gulf attacked — Re- 
pulse — Its Batteries run — Landing at Bruinsburgh — Energy 
and Activity of Grant— Superintends every thing — Strikes In- 
land — Battle of Port Gibson — Grant assumes Command — The 
Victory — Graud Gulf Evacuated — Entered by Grant. 

Instead of being discouraged at these repeated 
failures, occupying such a long time, until the pub- 
lic patience was well-nigh exhausted. Grant seemed 
to feel relieved that these unsatisfactory experiments 
were at last over, for he would now be justified in 
taking the short bold course, so much more congenial 
to his tastes, and in harmony with his character. 
The winter and spring freshets had somewhat sub- 
sided, so that the peninsula opposite Vicksburg 
might be made passable to troops, and he resolved 
to march his army across it to a point below, while 
Porter run the batteries with his iron-clads and 
steamers. Farragut had passed the batteries at 
Port Hudson, with some of his vessels, so that 
7 



146 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Grant was able to communicate with him respect- 
ing Banks, from whom he found he could expect 
no support. He was aware that the Government 
wished him to eifect a junction with that officer 
before Port Hudson, if the latter did not join him, 
and it is believed by many that he resolved to do 
so. Except the feeble attempt to open the Hed 
Kiver route, we, however, see no evidence that he 
ever wished to put himself under the control of 
that political General. Besides, he knew that 
Port Hudson was only an appendage to Vicks- 
burg, and to combine all their forces against a 
mere outwork was unwise. He knew that if 
Vicksburg was captured, Port Hudson would 
fall -without fighting ; but the overthrow of the lat- 
ter place would have no effect on the former, except 
to swell the forces that could be brouo;ht ao-ainst 
it. But by the time this was accomplished, the 
enemy also would have concentrated forces to op- 
pose them, so that the relative strength of the two 
would remain nearly the same. Grant, therefore, 
with his clear perception, saw that Vicksburg 
was the point where the blow should be struck, 
and determined, if events justified it, to plant it 
there. Still, the objections to his contemplated 
movement were grave, and the difficulties formida- 
ble, and the responsibility and risk frightful. He 
knew the country was filled with clamor against 
him. Some of his best fi?iends had deserted him. 



A BOLD RESOLUTION. 147 

Governors and members of Congress visited his 
camp, and went away with dismal stories of his 
inefficiency ; and everywhere it was said, that he 
had only obstinacy in the presence of difficulties, 
mthout the genius to overcome them. Confidence 
in him was being lost, and now he proposed to 
take a step full of peril, not only to himself, but 
to the army. He was not going to risk a battle 
to save his reputation, but to put it and the fate 
of fifty thousand men on a single throw — for with 
the army once below Vicksburg, defeat was 
destruction. He would have no base to fall back 
upon, no line of retreat left open. Victories sud- 
den, rapid, constant, and overwhelming, he must 
have, or he was lost. Resting, as he was, under a 
cloud, it required a character of amazing strength, 
under these circumstances, to venture on such a 
bold and hazardous course. He might well hesi- 
tate, even though some of his ablest officers ap- 
proved it. But when, as they did, one and all, 
oppose it, not hesitatingly and doubtfully, but de- 
cidedly and emphatically, it seems marvellous that 
he did not waver. 

Sherman, his best and warmest friend, and ablest 
general, wrote a letter to him urging him not to 
venture on such a move. McPherson, equally 
sagacious and beloved, with others, condemned it. 
Government did not expect it — no one was near 
by to sustain him in a course fraught with such fear- 



148 LIFE OF GRANT. 

f\il consequences. Nothing excites our admiration 
more for this strong, silent man, than to see him 
thus stand all alone — enemies without, and friends 
within, standing aloof — while he gazes thought- 
fully, sternly, do^vn the fearful abyss into which he 
has determined to cast himself and his fifty thou- 
sand men. 

To what a sublime height must he have reached, 
to be so completely above all surrounding influ- 
ences of every kind ! How clear and penetrating 
the glance that could see light beyond the dark- 
ness that bounded the vision of all others, 
even the most clear-sighted. Self-poised, self sus- 
tained, equal in himself alone to the great crisis 
he had reached, he rises before us like some 
grand column, resting firm on its foundation by 
mere weight alone. " Call a council of officers be- 
fore deciding on so hazardous a step," said the 
sagacious, true-hearted Sherman — but he wanted 
no council — ^his determination was unalterably 
taken, and nothing but positive orders fi?om Gov- 
ernment could change it, and no one knows how 
near those orders came to be issued. The Presi- 
dent was beset with men, high in position, warn- 
ino; and beseechino; him to remove Grant. One, 
who had been a firm friend of the latter, waited on 
Mr. Lincoln, and after reminding him of his past 
friendship for Grant, said that he must now aban- 
don him. He evidently was not equal to the po- 



TRIED A LITTLE LONGER. 149 

sitiori that he occupied, and the good of the coun- 
try required that he should be sacrificed. The 
President heard him through, and then, pausing 
thoughtfully a moment, replied : "I rather like 
the man. / think I'll try him a little longer.'''' 
Whjjt momentous results hung on that little sen- 
tence! If it had been, 'Til try him no longer," 
who can calculate the delay, discouragements, and 
loss of life that would have followed. Grant, 
however, determined that if " a little longer" time 
was given him, he would be beyond the reach of 
orders from any source, until his fate was sealed. 
These might follow him as fast as snoAv-flakes seek 
the earth, yet they would not overtake the tramp 
of his victorious battalions, if he were successful — 
and if not, they would never find him. He took 
no precautions against false accusations should he 
fail — left behind no defence to save his reputation. 
Silent, calm, and resolute, he gave all his atten- 
tion to the mighty task before him. It is true, 
his most intimate biographer states, that Grant 
did not determine at first on the bold course 
that he afterwards took — that his object in getting 
below Vicksburg was to cooperate with Banks, at 
Port Hudson, and help reduce it, when both 
armies could move against Vicksburg. But we 
see no evidence of this in his movements, and are 
inclined to think the statement is made simply be- 
cause such was the drift of Grant's orders, and 



150 LIFE OF GRANT. 

sucli the wish of Halleck and the President. In 
the first place, Banks was the senior of Grant, and 
hence, in that case, would have assumed supreme 
command, leaving the latter only a subordinate, 
and, though he would never put his mere personal 
ambition against the public service, he knew 
enough of Banks' military education and career, 
not to place much confidence in his ability to 
carry out such an expedition. In this his best 
oflicers sympathized with him. Besides, more than 
a month previous, he had said that he had discover- 
ed a good Avagon-road across the peninsula, from 
Milliken's Bend to New Carthage, when the water 
was low, and added, " My expectation is for some 
of the naval fleet to run the batteries of Vicks- 
burg, whilst the army moves through by this new 
route. Once there, I will move to Warrenton or 
Grand Gulf, probably the latter. From either of 
these points, there are good roads to Jackson and 
the Black River bridge, without crossing Black 
Kiver. I will keep my army together, and see to 
it that I am not cut off from my supplies, or beat 
in any other way than a fair fight.'" 

But what had he to do with Black Biver or 
Jackson, lying nearly fifty miles directly east of 
Vicksburg, and nearly three times that distance 
northeast from the point at which he proposed to 
land ? To march back inland, fighting as he did 
for a week or more, was certainly an extraordi- 



HIS GREAT PLAN UNCHANGED. 151 

nary way to reach Banks, at Port Hudson, nearly 
two liundi'ed miles below. More than this, there 
was no change of circumstances whatever, after he 
had passed Vicksburg, to induce him to change 
his plan, if that was to cooperate with Banks. 
On the contrary, the changes that did occur were 
all of a character to make him carry it out ; for he 
was compelled to go below the point where he had 
calculated he could cross the Mississippi. He did 
not anticipate the necessity of going below Grand 
Gulf. The point where he eventually planted his 
army on the east shore, was so low down as to 
increase the hazard of the enterprise against Vicks- 
burg, and took him just so far towards Banks. 
In proportion as he increased the distance he 
would have to march to get in the rear of Vicks- 
burg, in that same proportion did he give the 
enemy time to concentrate his forces against him. 
Hence, it is difficult to see what " circumstances " 
induced Grant to change his plan, if that plan was 
to send a corps to Port Hudson. It is true that 
Grant had hoped to open an inland communica- 
tion, by bayous, through which transports could 
pass, and so his route for supplies be kept open. 
But, by the time he had got one vessel through, 
low water made further navigation impracticable 
and he had to resort to roads and bridges. But 
all this took place before he started, and not after 
he was below Vicksburg. More than this, all his 



152 LIFE OF GRANT. 

efforts on the east shore had not been merely to get 
below the place, but behind it, and there he evi- 
dently determined to plant his army. 

Wlien Grant had his entire army well in hand, 
and had gathered from up the river all the yawls 
and boats he needed, he began his great decisive 
movement. Porter's gunboats had shown that 
they could pass the batteries with comparative 
impunity, and the former resolved to try the ex- 
periment of getting transports past also, while he 
marched his army inland down the river to meet 
them. It was resolved to test this matter at night, 
and the plan adopted was, to have the iron-clads 
move doAvn and engage the batteries, while the 
transports, under cover of the smoke and darkness, 
should slip quietly by, near the western shore. It 
was a desperate enterprise, to which men could 
not legitimately be ordered, and volunteers were 
therefore called for. So many offered, that the 
necessary number had finally to be drawn by lot. 
Grant resolved to try the experiment first with 
three transports. 

A little before midnight, the gunboats moved 
from their moorings and dropped silently down 
the river, followed by the transports. Seven iron- 
clads engaged the batteries, while the river steam- 
ers, towing the barges, attempted to run the gaunt- 
let of their fire for fifteen miles. It was a nio-lit 

o 

of intense anxiety to Grant; for if this plan 



RUNNING THE BATTERIES. 153 

failed, even his fertile resources could see no way 
of getting in the rear of Vicksburg. An hour 
had not elapsed after the boats disappeared in the 
darkness, before the thunder of artillery shook the 
shore, followed soon after by the flame of a confla- 
gration, kindled by the rebels, to light up the bo- 
som of the Mississippi. Under its blaze the poor 
transports lay revealed as distinctly as though the 
noon-day sun was shining, while the men on board 
in turn could see the soldiers hurrying through the 
streets of Vicksburg, and working the guns. They 
at once became an exposed target to the heavy bat- 
teries, the shells of which cut the ropes and rods 
supporting the chimneys of the boats, burst in the 
pilot-houses, and among the machinerj^, and fill- 
ed the air on every side with their flying frag- 
ments. Yet the little fleet steamed rapidly on, 
hugging the opposite shore, hopmg under its 
shadow and the covering smoke to escape destruc- 
tion. Grant stood on a transport located just 
above the bend, and watched the movement with 
the deepest anxiety. He was within range of the 
rebel batteries, and shot and shell fell all around 
him. Yet he never moved, but kept his eyes on 
the bosom of the stream, now light as day, where 
his barges moved, mere dark specks on the wa- 
ter. 

"Every transport was struck, and two were 
drawn into the eddy, and ran over a part of the 



154 LIFE OF GRANT. 

distance in front of Vicksburg no less than three 
times. The Forest Queen was disabled by a 
round shot, and drifted down opposite the lower 
picket stations, where the gunboat Tuscumbia 
took her in tow, and landed her just above the cre- 
vasse at New Carthage. The Henry Clay also be- 
came disabled, and was in a sinking condition soon 
after coming within range of the upper batteries ; 
she had in tow a barge with soldiers on board, 
which was cast loose, and floated down the stream. 
Not long afterwards the boat itself took fire, from 
the explosion of a shell, and burned to the wa- 
ter's edge, drifting along with the current, a flam- 
in 2: mass. General Sherman was in a small boat, 
watching the bombardment, and picked up the 
pilot as he floated from the wreck. The crew 
pushed off in yawls to the Louisiana side, wliere 
they landed, and hid themselves behind an old 
levee, during the cannonade. After it had ceased, 
they made their way back through the submerged 
swamps, to camp." 

" The light streamed up from the blazing hull of 
the Henry Clay, and threw into strong relief 
against the shadows of night the other transports, 
and the gunboats at their fiery work. The cur- 
rents were strong, and dangerous eddies delayed 
the vessels ; the lights glaring in every direction, 
and the smoke enveloping the squadron, confused 
the pilots ; the bulwarks, even of the iron-clads, 



PAST THE BATTERIES. 155 

were crushed ; and the uproar of artillery, reecho- 
ing from the hills, was incessant. One of the 
heaviest guns of the enemy was seen to burst in 
the streets of Vicksburg, and the whole popula- 
tion was awake and out of doors, watching the 
scene on which its destinies depended. For two 
hours and forty minutes the fleets were under 
fire. But at last the transports and the gunboats 
had all got out of range, the blazing beacons on 
the hills and streams burned low, the array of 
batteries belching flame and noise from the em- 
battled bluffs had ceased their utterances, and 
silence and darkness resumed their sway over the 
beleaguered city, and the swamps and rivers that 
encircle Vicksburo-." * 

o 

The next night Grant sent down six more 
steamers towing twelve coal barges, of Avhich all 
but one steamer, and half the barges, got through, 
thouarh most were more or less damao-ed. 

In the mean time, McClernand, by order of 
Grant, had taken his corps, which had the honor 
to form the advance, and marched across the 
peninsula, driving the enemy out of Richmond, 
that lay in his route, while the pioneer corps, 
under Captain Patterson, made a bridge two 
hundred feet lono-, of the lo2;s taken from the 
adjacent houses. The columns marched over, but 
the difficulties of the route had but just com- 

* Col. Badcau 



156 LIFE OF GRANT. 

menced. " Old roads had to be repaired, new 
ones made, boats constructed for tlie transporta- 
tion of men and supplies, twenty miles of levee 
sleeplessly guarded day and night, and every pos- 
sible precaution taken to prevent the rising flood 
from breakino; throus-h the levee and eno-ulfinp; us/' 
The rebel cavalry were also hovering around, but, 
being at last driven across Bayou Vidal, McCler- 
nand, on the 4th of April, embarked in a skiff, 
and, accompanied by Osterhaus and his staff, 
rowed down to Avithin half a mile of Carthage, on 
the Mississippi river. Fired upon by the enemy, 
the skiff was brought to a halt, but not until it 
was ascertained that the levee had been cut, and 
the water, iu three currents, was pouring through, 
flooding all the country. Capturing a flat-boat, 
McClernand mounted it with two howitzers, and 
embarking a party, sent it down to drive the enemy 
out of Carthage, which they succeeded in doing. 

In this march, McClernand constructed nearly 
two thousand feet of bridgino; out of material 
created, for the most part, on the occasion — com- 
pleting, in three days and nights, the great mili- 
tary road across the Peninsula, from the Missis- 
sippi river to a point forty miles below Vicks- 
burg. 

Graut's orders to him were to occupy Grand 
Gulf, expecting that the troops would be em- 
barked at Carthage, and taken down in trans- 



ATTACK ON GRAND GULF. 157 

ports to that point. But this being found im- 
practicable, the only course left open was for the 
troops to keep on down the river, nearly fifty 
miles, to Hard Times, building bridges and con- 
structing roads as they marched. This place at 
length was reached, where the transports were 
awaiting them to carry them across to Grand 
Gulf, the spot selected by Grant for landing. 
But here, again, the rebels had anticipated him, 
and formidable batteries frowned from the place. 
The 17th Corps, under McPherson, had follow- 
ed close on the heels of McClernand, and Grant, 
after consulting with Admiral Porter, resolved to 
make an attempt to carry the works by assault. 
The plan was, for Porter to move up and silence 
the batteries, when the troops, which were on 
transports, would land and finish the work. On 
the morning of the 29th of April, the Admiral 
steamed boldly up with his six iron-clads, and for 
five hours and a half poured in shot and shell — at 
times running his vessels almost up to the muz- 
zles of the hostile guns. But the works were too 
elevated to be easily reached from the water, and 
although he could with his terrible fire drive the 
men from the guns, he was unable to dismount a 
single piece. Grant stood on a transport a little 
distance off, and watched the battle. Porter at 
length withdrew, having lost seventy-nine in killed 
and wounded. 



158 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Grant then signalled to him to be taken on 
board the flagship. It was now afternoon, and as 
time was every thing, he directed the Admiral, with 
his battered fleet, and carrying the wounded, to 
run the batteries with the transports that very 
night, while he disembarked the troops at Hard 
Times, and commenced his march below. He in 
the mean time directed the eastern shore to be ex- 
amined, with a view of ascertaining the locality 
and state of the roads leading from Grand Gulf 
back into the interior. The whole country seemed 
flooded, and he expected to float down the river 
until he could find high solid ground ; but being 
informed by a negro, that a good dry road led 
from the shore at Bruinsburg directly back to the 
bluffs, which were two miles distant, he landed 
there. In the mean time, he directed Sherman, who 
had not yet left Milliken's Bend, to make a demon- 
stration against Yicksburg, in order to keep Pem- 
berton, the commander there, from sendino; rein- 
forcements to Grand Gulf, while he attacked it. 
This Sherman did ; but on the 1st of May, he re- 
ceived orders from Grant, to push on with all pos- 
sible speed to join him. The latter also directed a 
battery to be planted at Perkins' landing, and an 
improvised gunboat stationed there to protect his 
supplies gathered at that point. He at the same 
time ordered two more tuojs, with two barges car- 
rymg provisions, to run the batteries at Vicksburg. 



THOROUGHLY AROUSED. 159 

" Do this," he said, " with all expedition, in forty- 
eight hours from receipt of orders, if possible. This 
is of immense importance. Should the crews de- 
cline runnino; throu";h, call on the commandino; 
officer for volunteers, and discharge the crews." 
At the same time that he was setting every thing in 
motion above him, he was marshalling his columns 
for an immediate advance up the river. He 
directed the chief commissary of the Thirteenth 
Corps, still m advance, to issue three days' rations, 
which were to last five, and not detain the officers 
drawing them to give vouchers for them, as was 
customary. Every hour was priceless, and not a 
moment's delay could be allowed. His strong 
nature, seemingly so sluggish, now exhibited its 
inherent strength ; and his mind, usually slow in 
its operations, worked with the rapidity of light- 
ning. He seemed omnipresent, and to embrace 
the minutest details in his SAvift, searching survey 
of his position. Nothing was left to subordinates 
but to execute his orders, which flew from one to 
another incessantly. No mistake must be made, 
and to avoid one he supermtended every thing 
himself, and kept in the advance where he could 
do it. 

He had not transports enough, and gunboats 
were used as such, to hurry the arriving troops 
over the river. Tents and wao;ons he ordered to 
be left behind till every man was across. His 



160 LIFE OF GRANT. 

own horse shared the common fate. Subordinates 
caught the spirit of their chief, and every thing 
moved as if the fate of the army rested on the 
next hour. Hence, the shore at Bruinsburg, was 
a scene of intense activity all day, for it was six 
miles from the point where the troops were em- 
barked, so that many trips had to be made with 
his scant transportation, to get them over ; but in 
twenty-four hours all of McClernand's corps and 
one division of McPherson's were landed, and by 
sunset, the bluifs, two miles distant, were reached. 
Grant knew the moment he struck inland, the 
enemy would penetrate his design, and so that 
very afternoon McClernand's corps Avas started 
off towards Port Gibson, lying to the southeast 
of Grand Gulf, the occupation of which would 
uncover the latter place. He did not even wait 
for the army-wagons to be brought across the 
river, but with three day's rations moved off at 
once. Grand Gulf, which he designed to make 
his base of supplies, must be taken before the 
enemy at Vicksburg, informed of his intentions, 
could reinforce the place. He saw that it must be 
svAft marching, quick fighting, sudden and con- 
stant victories, or the storm would gather so 
heavily about him that his advance would be 
stopped. Hence he ordered as little baggage to 
be taken as possible, and set the example of re- 
trenchment himself Washburne, member of 



SCANT BAGGAGE. 161 

Congress from Illinois, his ever fast friend, accom- 
panied the expedition, and says that Grant took 
with him " neither a horse, nor an orderly, nor a 
camp-chest, nor an overcoat, nor a blanket, nor 
even a clean shirt. His entire baggage for six 
days was a tooth-brush. He fared like the com- 
monest soldier in his command, partaking of his 
rations and sleeping upon the ground, with no 
covering but the canopy of heaven." This shows 
not only how terribly in earnest Grant at this 
point was, but also how thoroughly he compre- 
hended the peril of his situation. 

McClernand's corps started at three o'clock 
in the afternoon, and kept up its march till two 
o'clock in the morning, when it was suddenly 
brought to a halt by a battery in its path. At 
daybreak this was reconnoitred. 

The rebel commander at Grand Gulf, informed 
of Grant's movements, had marched promptly 
out with eleven thousand men, and taken a strong 
position along some deep ravines, flanked by heavy 
woods and canebrakes. McClernand, however, 
deployed his men the best way he could, and ad- 
vanced to the attack. The first thunder of artil- 
lery roused Grant, Avho was still at the landing, 
eight miles off, to the peril of a repulse, and 
ordering McPherson to push on as fast as possi- 
ble, borrowed a horse (for his own was not yet 
across), and with only his staff accompanying him. 



162 LIFE OF GRANT. 

galloped to the battle-field. The moment he 
arrived, he assumed command, and pressed the 
rebel position with relentless severity. In a few- 
hours McPherson's columns aj^peared on the field, 
when Grant ordered him at once to move a bri- 
gade to the help of Osterhaus, on the left, who 
could make no headway against the enemy. Grant 
accompanied this brigade in person, and directed 
it to charge across a ravine on the rebel flank, 
while Osterhaus should assault in front. It was 
done with a cheer, and Grant, with a smile, saw 
the hostile ranks give way, and after a short strug- 
gle to bear up against the shock, turn in swift- 
retreat. Position after position was now carried, 
until the whole rebel army was driven back. The 
victorious troops followed until darkness shut out 
every thing from view, when a halt was ordered, 
at a point only two miles from Port Gibson. Di- 
recting that no camp-fires should be lighted, except 
in the rear, or in deep gullies, and that the artil- 
lery be placed so as to command the surrounding 
country, Grant ordered McClernand to attack the 
enemy at daybreak. He then sat down and wrote 
his despatch to Washington by moonlight. 

His loss in killed and wounded in this battle 
was a little over eight hundred ; that of the ene- 
my somewhat less, as he was protected by his 
position. Grant, however, took six hundred and 
fifty prisoners, and six guns. Bowen, the rebel 



OCCUPIES GRAND GULF. 163 

general, did not wait for daybreak, but decamped 
in the night across the Bayou Pierre, destroying 
the bridge behind him. McClemand was at once 
set to work to rebuild it, which took all day. The 
next, the third. Grant pushed on the forces under 
McPherson, who crowded the enemy back, driving 
them through Willow Springs, a distance of fifteen 
miles from Port Gibson, and over the Big Black 
Biver in such haste, that they had not time to de- 
stroy the bridge. 

These successes compelled the evacuation of 
Grand Gulf, and on the same day Grant, taking 
one of Logan's brigades, and an escort of cavalry, 
left Willow Springs for that place. He found 
Porter in possession of it. He had now for three 
days been almost constantly in the saddle, not 
having had his clothes off during that time, but 
snatching his repose when and where he could. 
Going aboard one of the gunboats, he borrowed a 
change of linen, and then sat down and wrote 
despatches till midnight. 



CHAPTER X. 

THE GREAT MARCH. 

A Perilous Resolve — Cuts loose from Lis Base — Untiring Activity 
— Urgent Orders — Sherman's Arrival — His Astonisliment — 
Grant Marches for Jackson — Address to his Troops — Ilis little 
Son accompanies him — Despatch to Halleck — McPherson de- 
feats Johnston — Jackson evacuated — Grant's Son the first to 
enter it— Sherman left to destroy Public Property — The Army 
marches back toward Vicksburg — Johnston outmarched — Bat- 
tle of Champion's Hill — Grant with his Boy under Fire — 
" The Hill of Death "—Battle of Black Paver— Before Vicks- 
burg — Sherman's Opinion of the Campaign — Results of it — 
Its Resemblance to Napoleon's Italian Campaign. 

It is stated that, up to this time, Grant had not 
abandoned the design of establishing himself at 
Grand Gulf, and sending a corps to the aid of 
Banks. Be that as it may, all his movements 
looked in a different direction. A letter which he 
here received from Banks, stating that he would 
not be at Port Hudson for a week to come, left 
no room for further hesitation, if it ever existed. 
But instead of pushing directly for Vicksburg, 
Grant having learned that a large army was gath- 
ering in the interior to reinforce it, which would 
make the garrison outnumber his army, he deter- 
mined to throw himself between the two, and 
prevent the junction. At the same time, he wished 



A DARING RESOLUTION. 165 

to seize Jackson, fifty miles in rear of Vicksburg, 
and situated at the junction of the railroads by 
which the garrison was supplied. It was a bold, 
perilous movement. He might not prevent the 
junction of the two armies, when he would be too 
feeble to offer battle, while to keep open his com- 
munication with Grand Gulf, his depot of supplies 
fifty miles distant would require half of his army. 
In this dilemma, he took the daring resolution of 
cutting loose from his base altogether, and with 
only three days' rations in the haversacks of the 
soldiers, swing his army at once into the interior, 
trusting to the resources of the country to furnish 
the balance of the supplies. He knew that this 
step was looked upon with alarm by his best offi- 
cers. Not that they feared for themselves, for 
more loyal, fearless, and gallant subordinates 
never gathered around a gi*eat leader ; but they 
feared failure and ruin to the army, and damage 
to the common cause. They therefore respectfully 
urged him not to attempt it ; but he stood firm, 
though he stood alone. He knew, moreover, that 
if his purpose was known to the Government, he 
would be promptly ordered to face about. Still, 
he did not waver a moment. This quiet faith in 
himself invests him with a grandeur greater even 
than his victories. 

Without parade, quietly, yet with a resolution 
fixed as the granite hills, he, at midnight on the 



166 LIFE OF GEANT. 

3d of May, mounted his horse, " turned his back 
on the Mississippi River," and started for the ad- 
vance. The die was cast ; it was now victory or 
annihilation, glory or disgrace, life or death, with 
him and his noble army. He knew all this, as 
he rode on through the deep night, but he felt no 
missivino^s, no reorets. Thouohtful and solemn, 
as befitting so momentous a decision, he was never- 
theless borne up by a serene confidence in the cor- 
rectness of his judgment. Paralyzed by no fore- 
bodings, his mental faculties, instead of being 
depressed by the weight of responsibility he had 
taken on himself, were roused into tenfold activity. 
No orders could reach him now, until it was too 
late to obey them. Unfettered and free, he was 
in just the position for which nature designed 
him, and he went to work with an energy and 
power that astonish us. The army must be got 
in hand as quickly as untiring eiforts, and work 
by night and day, could do it ; and then he meant 
his motto should be that of Danton s, " Audace, 
audace, toujour s audace.'''' His staff was now 
allowed scarcely a moment's rest, and his orders 
flew from point to point with bewildering rapid- 
ity. Sherman was hurried forward with urgent 
appeals. Hurlbut, at Memphis, was directed to 
send on a division at once ; another was ordered 
from Milliken's Bend, with directions to march 
by brigades. At the same time, the road across 



URGENT ORDERS. 167 

the peninsula was ordered to be shortened, so that 
the trains could be pushed forward more rapidly. 
He also sent a despatch to the commissary at 
Grand Gulf to issue three days' rations, which 
must be made to last five, " if not seven, days," 
without waiting to go through the prescribed 
forms. A staff-officer was hurried thither with a 
carte blanche to use Grant*'s name in any way ne- 
cessary to rush on the supplies, while the hard- 
worked commissary was overwhelmed with the 
questions, " How many teams have been loaded 
with rations and sent forward ? How many wag- 
ons have you ferried over the river? How many 
are still to bring over ? What teams have gone 
back for rations?" and so on. He heard the 
sound of the mustering hosts, whose junction 
must be prevented at all hazards, and every hour 
was pregnant with destiny to him. At the same 
time, he directed McClernand to sweep the sur- 
rounding country for forage, and McPherson to 
push his reconnoissance up to the outposts of Vicks- 
burg, in order to make the commander there be- 
lieve that he designed to move directly on the place. 
As soon as Sherman's columns got within sup- 
porting distance, McPherson and McClernand 
were pushed forward. Sherman, when he reach- 
ed Hankinson's Ferry, was amazed at the evidence 
of hurry on every side. The trains and escorting 
troops were in confusion, each team hurrying for- 



168 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ward without stopping to consider the order of its 
going. Ignorant of Grant's determination to swing 
loose from liis base, he wrote to him, describing the 
chaos he had found on the road, and begging him 
to stop till he could get things arranged more sys- 
tematically ; for, said he, "this road will be jam- 
med, as sure as life, if you attempt to supply fifty 
thousand men by one single road." To this com- 
munication he received the follomng reply, which 
must have startled him beyond expression : " I do 
not calculate upon the possibility of supplying the 
army with fall rations from Grand Gulf I know 
it will be impossible without constructing addi- 
tional roads. What I do expect, however, is to 
get up what rations of hard-bread, coffee, and salt 
we can, and make the country furnish the balance. 
We started from Bruinsburg mth an average of 
about two days' rations, and I received no more 
from our own supplies for some days ; abundance 
was found in the mean time. Some corn-meal, 
bacon, and vegetables were found, and an abun- 
dance of beef and mutton. A delay would give the 
enemy time to reinforce and fortify. If Blair 
was up now, I believe we could be in Vicksburg 
in seven days. Tlie command here has an aver- 
age of about three days'' rations^ which coidd he 
made to last that time. You are in a country 
where the troops have already lived off the people 
for some days, and may find provisions more 



A NOBLE ADDRESS. 169 

scarce; but, as we get upon new soil, they are 
more abundant, particularly in corn and cattle. 
Bring Blair's two brigades up as soon as pos- 
sible " 

The movements of the several corps and divis- 
ions cannot be described with any satisfaction to the 
general reader. Grant had not proceeded far from 
Hankinson's Ferry, before he learned that Pem- 
beiton was concentrating his troops at Edwards' 
Station, some twenty-five miles out of Vicksburg, 
towards which the latter supposed our columns 
were moving. This caused a change in the order 
and direction of the march, for Grant was deter- 
mined to get into Jackson, destroy the stores 
there, and defeat Johnston, who was hastening 
towards it, before the latter could effect a junction 
with Pemberton. Aware of the short rations, 
heavy marching, and constant fighting awaiting 
his array. Grant, before leaving Hankinson's 
Ferry, issued the following stirring address to his 
troops, which has the ring of some of Napoleon's 
famous proclamations : 

Headqtjaetees Army of the Tennessee, in the Field, } 
Hankinson's Feeky, May 7. ) 

Soldiers of the Army of Tennessee : 

Once more I thank jou for adding another factory to 
the long list of those previously won by your valor and 
endurance. The triumph gained over the enemy near 
Port Gibson, on the first, was one of the most impor- 
tant of the war. The capture of five cannon, and more 



170 LIFE OF GRANT. 

tlian one thousand prisoners, the possession of Grand 
Gulf, and a firm foothold on the highlands between the 
Big Black and Bayou Pierre, fi*om whence we threaten 
the whole line of the enemy, are among the fruits of this 
brilliant achievement. The march from Milliken's 
Bend to the point opposite Grand Gulf, was made in 
stormy weather, over the w^orst of roads. Bridges and 
ferries had to be constructed. Moving by night as well 
as by day, with labor incessant, and extraordinary pri- 
vations, endured by men and officers, such as have been 
rarely paralleled in any campaign, not a murmur or 
complaint has been uttered. A few days continuance 
of the same zeal and constancy, will secure to this army 
crowning victories over the rebellion. 

More difficulties and privations are before us ; let us 
endure them manfully. Other battles are to be fought ; 
let us fight them bravely. A grateful country will re- 
joice at our success, and history will record it with im- 
mortal honor. U. S. Grant, 

Brig.-Gen. Commanding. 

He set an example of the privations and endur- 
ance which he required of his troops. Satisfied 
with his hard bread and coflfee, sleeping on the 
porch of some house along the road, or wherever 
he found time to take a little repose, he showed 
himself impervious to fatigue, and indiflferent to 
ordinary comforts. A little son, only thirteen 
years of age, accompanied him in this trying, 
strange campaign, and, though hardly big enough 
to sit a horse, was seen galloping alongside of his 
father. Taking the hard fare of the day without 
murmuring, he slept in his strong arms by night. 
The stern leader, carrying the fate of the arm}- 



A SIGNIFICANT DESPATCH. 171 

on his heart, could yet find time to enjoy the prat- 
tle of his boy. and the two moved on amid the 
crowding columns, and into the confused noise of 
battle, a strange contrast, yet a touching picture, 
which often brought the tears to the soldiers' eyes. 
To McPherson was assigned the duty of push- 
ing forward and seizing Jackson, while the main 
army was held back to watch Pemberton. The 
former pushed on in the direction marked out by 
Grant, who, day by day, changed the details of 
his main plan according as the movements of the 
enemy made it necessary. Arriving at Cayuga, 
he, on the 11th of May, wrote to Halleck, stating 
his position and purpose, and closed with the fol- 
lowing significant sentence : " As I shall communi- 
cate with Grand Gulf no more, unless it becomes ne- 
cessary to send a train with a heavy escort, you may 

NOT HEAR FEOM ME AGAIN FOR SEVERAL DAYS." 

He certainly did not wish to hear from him, for 
he knew the General-in-Chief well, and feared an 
order to abandon at once his daring movement, 
which he had no intention of doing. It was well 
for the country that communication was cut olf ; for 
that very day a despatch was flashing along the 
wires ordermg him to return and cooperate with 
Banks. When it finally reached Grant he ivas re- 
turning, though not to Grand Gulf, but to Vicks- 
burg, over the shattered battalions of Pemberton. 
McPherson moved forward, and on the 12th 



172 LIFE OF GRANT. 

came upon the enemy, numbering five thousand, 
posted in a strong position, within two miles of 
KajTnond. Sweeping these from his path, in a 
short, sharp battle, he kept on towards Jackson — 
marching on the 14th twelve miles through a 
blinding, pitiless storm. At ten o'clock he drew 
up his drenched army before the formidable breast- 
works of the enemy, who were not only strongly 
protected, but also out-numbered him heavily. 
The storm now broke, and the spring sun shone 
forth in all its splendor, making the rain-drops on 
the trees and meadows shine like jewels. Awak- 
ened by the freshness and beauty, the birds came 
out and filled the air with their gay carols, a rain- 
bow spanned the heavens, and all combined to 
make it a scene of transcendent loveliness. Amid 
this peaceful splendor, McPherson drew up his 
fifteen thousand bayonets, and riding along the 
glittering line on his splendid black charger, 
aroused the enthusiasm of his men by a stirring 
appeal. As soon as the artillery had got into posi- 
tion and thoroughly searched the hostile works, he 
ordered a charge. At first, slowly and with 
measured steps, as though on a dress parade, 
Croker s whole line moved over the field, closing 
up, calmly, the ugly rents made by the rebel artil- 
lery, and kept sternly on without returning a shot 
till within thirty yards of the works, when a sud- 
den flash leaped from the ranks, followed by a 



ENTERS JACKSON. 173 

cheer that shook the field; and then, with one 
bound, they scaled the ramparts and poured like 
a resistless flood through the hostile camp, scatter- 
ing every thing from their path, and chasing the 
flying foe into Jackson. 

Grant had by this movement completely deceiv- 
ed Pemberton, who all this time lay at Edwards' 
Station avv'^aitino- an attack from him. 

Not knowino; what force Johnston mifrht have 
been able to concentrate at Jackson, and its pos- 
session being of vital importance to him. Grant 
had directed Sherman to follow McPherson, to 
aid him if necessary ; and his presence at the criti- 
cal moment on the flank of the enemy hastened 
his flight. 

McPherson, now moving forNvard, came, at 
length, in sight of the rebel intrenchments and 
rifle-pits in front of Jackson. These extended as 
far as the eye could reach, and presented a formi- 
dable appearance. Grant, in the mean time, had 
joined Sherman, and seeing how strong and ex- 
tensive the w^orks were, directed him to send a 
force to the extreme right, to see if a flank move- 
ment could not be made in that direction. After 
waiting some time to hear the result of this move- 
ment, and becoming impatient at the delay, he, ac- 
companied only by his staff and little boy, rode 
over to see about it. He found that the enemy 
had evacuated the place, and the road leading into 



174 LIFE OF GRANT. 

it was clear. He immediately pushed forward, 
when his son clapped spurs to his horse, and 
dashing ahead, galloped alone into the capital of 
the State, the first into it. Grant smiled at his 
enthusiam, and followed him leisurely. 

He was now at the goal of his march westward, 
in which he had shattered Johnston's army though 
he had not captured it, as he hoped to do. On the 
contrary it had escaped to the north, evidently with 
the intention of coming down on the railroad west 
of him, and joining Pemberton. This he must 
prevent at all hazards, and calling his corps com- 
manders around him in the State Hall that after- 
noon, he jiave them their instructions. Sherman's 
duty was to occupy the to-\\Ti and works, and de- 
stroy the railroad track, stores, and property that 
could aid the enemy. 

The night before, Johnston had sent a despatch, 
by three different messengers, to Pemberton, re- 
questing him to hasten up, and attack Grant's 
rear so that he might be kept at bay until the 
troops that were being hurried forward could have 
time to come up. One of these despatches was 
sent by a man who was in Jackson as a Union 
spy, whither he had travelled from Memphis. 
He took it straight to McPherson, who sent it 
and the bearer to Grant. The latter, therefore, 
became fully aware of the enemy's plans, and 
could act with certainty and promptness. Mc- 



OUTWITS THE ENEMY. 175 

Pherson, in consequence, was sent that afternoon 
back towards Bolton, distant some twenty miles — 
the nearest place that Johnston could strike the rail- 
road in his march to join Pemberton. To Mc- 
Clernand, who was far in the rear, he also sent a 
despatch directing him to march in the same direc- 
tion. His orders were urgent. General Blair, at 
Auburn, was also ordered to move towards the same 
point, and the tired columns were soon sweeping 
over the broken country towards a common cen- 
tre. The rains had made the roads heavy, and 
the troops were weary, but they marched cheer- 
fully off. 

Pemberton was still at Edwards' Station, where 
he had called a council of war to decide whether 
he should obey Johnston's order to move on 
Grant's rear. At this very time, the latter was 
being driven from Jackson. Completely deceived 
by the celerity of his adversary's movements, Pem- 
berton finally determined to act on his own judg- 
ment, and by a brilliant movement cut Grant's 
communication with Grand Gulf. He did not 
know that Grant had done this for himself lonsr 
ago, and would be, on that very afternoon and night, 
bearing down upon him with his victorious col- 
umns. He, however, soon discovered his mistake, 
and reversing his march moved back to Edwards' 
Station, towards which Grant's army was advanc- 
ing along three different roads. McClernand was 



176 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ordered to push Blair's and A. P. Smith's divis- 
ions along by the southern road — Carr s and Os- 
terhaus' by the middle road, while Hovey kept 
along the northern one, which runs direct from 
Bolton to it. 

Smith's advance first came upon the enemy's 
skirmishers, when firing commenced. Pemberton 
kept retiring, until by the fierce manner in which 
he was pressed he found, to his astonishment, that 
Grant's army was in his front. He then formed 
his line of battle, with his left resting on Cham- 
pion Hill, the highest ground in sight. The slopes 
of this hill Avere heavily wooded, and seamed with 
ravines, which made it difficult for troops to ad- 
vance up them in any order. The top was cleared 
of all trees and underbrush, thus furnishing a 
fine position for the enemy's artillery, which, 
planted there, swept the entire country around. 

Pemberton's line of battle extended for four 
miles, running southward from this crest — his 
centre being on the middle road from Raymond. 
Hovey's division came up on the Bolton road in 
front of the hill. Logan, with two brigades, was 
to the right of the road, and farther advanced. 

Grant labored under great disadvantage in be- 
ing ignorant of the country, while the enemy was 
thoroughly acquainted with every foot of it. Nor 
was this all ; the former could not spare time to 
make thorough reconnoissances nor gradual ap- 



SPIES. 177 

proaclies. Swung out as his army was into the 
open country, it must keep moving till its base was 
secured. Besides, delay would give time for 
the rebel reinforcements to arrive, and combine 
against him. He must, therefore, not only fight 
the enemy on unknown ground, but fight him as 
soon as found. Hence he resolved to wait here 
only long enough to get a part of his army up, and 
the rest in supporting distance, before he moved 
on the enemy's position. 

That night two men employed on the railroad 
came into his lines, and reported Pemberton's for- 
ces to be twenty thousand strong. Grant was 
waked up at daybreak to receive these messengers. 
He immediately sent back to Sherman, who was 
finishing the Avork of destruction at Jackson, to 
hurry forward to his support, as the entire force 
of the enemy was immediately in front, and a 
battle might be brought on at any moment. The 
despatch was urgent, and in one hour after Sher- 
man received it, the columns of his advance 
division were in motion. At half past six, a de- 
spatch was received from McPherson, asking Grant 
to come to the front immediately. The latter gal- 
loped off at once, and on his way found the road 
blocked with teams, so that the troops could not 
pass. These he ordered to be drawn up one side 
immediately, so as to to give room for the marching 
columns. Keaching Hovey, he found him drawn up 

8* 



178 LIFE OF GRANT. 

in order of battle, but lie would not let him com- 
mence tlie attack until he could hear from McCler- 
nand, moving up on the southern road. Officer after 
officer was sent with headlong speed to the latter, 
with orders to press on with all haste. "Close up 
your forces expeditiously as possible," he said. 

The firing which had been kept up between 
Hovey''s and the enemy's skirmishers all the 
morning, increased in fierceness, until by eleven 
o'clock the battle was fairly opened. The bald 
top of the hill crowned with the hostile batteries, 
was evidently the key to the whole position of the 
enemy, and hence the great struggle centred here. 
McPherson posted two batteries in an advanta- 
geous position, and opened a terrible fire upon 
it. Under cover of it Hovey pushed boldly for- 
ward in the face of a murderous fire of musketry, 
and began to mount the tangled slope. Inch by 
inch, the irregular line pressed upward, until at 
last the height was won, and several guns and 
prisoners fell into his hands. But the enemy ral- 
lied behind a deep cut in the road, which had been 
sunk in the ridge, while Pemberton, informed of 
the repulse at this vital point, hurried forward 
reinforcements that now came pouring along the 
crest with loud yells. These charging with the 
re-formed troops on Hovey, bore him back, after a 
gallant attempt on his part to hold his ground. 
Grant all this time stood on an eminence that was 



UNDER FIRE WITH HIS SON. 179 

in range of the enemy's guns, with his little son by 
his side, watching the varying fortunes of the fight 
with the intensest interest, and wondering at the 
unaccountable detention of McClernand. The balls 
whistled around them, but he thought only of the 
struggle, on the issue of which his fate depended. 
If McClernand's four divisions would only come 
up, victory would be certain ; and he therefore 
again despatched an officer urging him forward. 
But this commander Avas kept back by a small 
force, the size of which he could not ascertain in 
the thickly-wooded country through which he had 
to move. But the heavy roar of artillery, and 
crash of musketry in front, would have told him 
on a moment's reflection, that the decisive battle 
was beino; fouo-ht there, and that the force that 
hovered around his advance, could onh' be a thin 
curtain of troops, whose sole object Avas to keep 
him away from the spot w^iere the great struggle 
was going on. Grant's anxiety was becoming 
painful, when he saw abrigade of Crocker's, march- 
ing rapidly on the field. He immediately sent it 
in to the aid of Hovey, who could hardly hold his 
own. Thus strengthened, this gallant officer was 
able to maintain his ground. The enemy, how- 
ever, pressed heavily upon him, and the fifteen 
thousand men under McClernand were sorely 
needed. Again forced to retire, Hovey sent back 
for help. But Grant expected eveiy moment to 



180 LIFE OF GRANT. 

hear the roar of McClernand's guns to the south, 
and delayed, for he had no troops to spare. At 
this critical moment, it seemed that the enemy 
would win and hold the height. Seeing the dan- 
ger. Grant at last ordered two more of Crocker's 
brigades into the gap between Logan and Hovey, 
which had been made by the movement of the 
former farther to the right; while McPherson, 
with such troops as he could gather, was directed 
to sweep round to the rebel rear. McPherson 
moved off at the double quick, while Crocker's 
brigades charged with a cheer, rolling back the 
hostile line. But fresh reinforcements kept pour- 
ing in jfrom that portion of the rebel line on which 
McClernand should have been pressing, and the 
danger of defeat was imminent, when a brigade of 
Logan's, marching at the double quick, charged 
across a ravine in flank and up the hill, carrying 
an important position and capturing seven guns. 
In the mean time McPherson had worked so far 
around to the enemy's rear, that, fearing their re- 
treat would be cut off, they broke and fled, and 
the battle of Champion Hill was won. Pursuit 
was kept up till after dark, when the tired troops 
were halted. 

Grant conducted this battle in person, and 
fought it with only fifteen thousand men. It is 
easy to see, therefore, what the result would have 
been, had the other fifteen thousand under Mc- 
Clernand came up in time, as he expected. 



HILL OF DEATH. 181 

Grant's loss in this desperate battle was nearly 
one sixth of all the force engaged — that of the 
enemy was about three thousand killed and 
wounded, and thi'ee thousand prisoners. But 
what was of still more consequence, one whole 
division, composing Pemberton s right, was cut 
off from the main army by Grant's pursuit, and 
never joined it again — thus materially lessening the 
garrison at Vicksburg. 

The hill, for the possession of which this san- 
guinary struggle had taken place, presented a 
frightful appearance. Nearly five thousand men 
had fallen on the narrow spot, and pools of blood 
stood in the trampled and muddy road, while 
mangled corpses strewed the summit and sides. 
Dead and dying horses, and broken artillery car-^ 
riages, and abandoned arms, helped to swell the 
horrors of the scene. Friend and foe were heaped 
together in one "red burial blent." It was a 
ghastly spectacle, even to the soldiers, and they 
named it the "-Hill of Death:* 

Grant, with his staff, pushed on with the pm'su- 
ing column, and actually got ahead of it in the dark- 
ness, and had to retrace his steps till he reached it. 
A house stood near the camp, ^7hich Pember- 
ton had used for a field hospital during the day, 
and was now literally crowded with the dead and 
dying. No tents or wagons had yet come up, and 
Grant, with his boy by his side, stretched himself 



182 LIFE OF GRANT. 

on the porch, and endeavored to snatch a little re- 
pose amid the groans of the sufferers, who lay 
bleeding and dying within. That night he re- 
ceived Halleck's despatch of the 11th of May, 
ordering him to return and cooperate with Banks ; 
but the campaign that seemed so daring had been 
won. " The subordinate was indeed retracing his 
steps, but with victorious banners ; no danger now 
of rebuke ; no more countermands, no more 
recalls." Grant had moved so rapidly that John- 
ston was now hopelessly cut off from Pemberton. 
On the very day of the battle, the rebel com- 
mander was resting liis troops, after performing 
the prodigious march, the day before, of ten miles. 
While he was thus halting, Sherman was pressing 
forward at the urgent order of Grant, and after 
mid-day made tiDenty miles. 

Starting a column in pursuit the next morn- 
ing, before it was fairly light. Grant came up in 
about six miles with the enemy, strongly posted 
on both sides of the Big Black river. On the side 
nearest him they were encircled by a bayou, with 
its extremities touching the river above and below 
their position, while on the opposite side arose a 
bluff black with batteries. McClernand had 
scarcely opened with his artillery, when the gal- 
lant Osterhaus was wounded. In the mean time, 
Gen. Lawler had crept around to the right, and 
then charged over the open ground to the bayou. 



A STRUGGLE FOR LIFE. 183 

Finding a spot wide enough for four men to pass 
abreast, where the brushwood had not been piled 
up, the men, flinging their blankets and haver- 
sacks on the ground, plunged into the water, and 
struggling across amid the raining bullets, suddenly 
appeared in the enemy's rear. Panic-stricken at 
this unexpected apparition, the rebels, abandon- 
ing their guns, fled for the bridge. The troops on 
the farther side of the river, seeing the fugitives 
rushing for the crossing, seized with the same 
panic, set fire to the bridge and fled in wild terror 
inland. Not half of their comrades had succeeded 
in crossing, when the bridge was wrapt in flames, 
eftectually barring all passage. A part had at 
the outset refused to fly, and surrendered where 
they stood. The remaining part, now finding 
themselves cut ofi^, while the pursuers ^\^ere close 
behind, plunged into the stream, with the bullets 
raining around them. Ofiicers and men were 
mingled in the wild struggle for life, many of 
whom sank to rise no more. Eighteen cannon 
and over seventeen hundred prisoners fell into 
Grant's hands in this short conflict. 

Pemberton now retreated behind his works at 
Vicksburg. 

Only one pontoon train had as yet reached 
Grant, and this he had previously given to Sher- 
man, to enable him to cross the Black Piver 
farther up, so as to flank, if necessary, the enemy 



184 LIFE OF GRANT. 

in his position on the river. He desired earnestly 
to follow up the demoralized enemy, and enter his 
works in full pursuit ; but, the bridges being de- 
stroyed, and this, his only pontoon train, being 
with Sherman on the right, he was compelled to 
halt till means of crossing could be provided. 

Sherman was directed, after crossing, to follow 
the enemy into the city, if he found it practicable 
to do so — if not to halt, and place his trooj^s so as 
to open communication with him the moment he 
was over the river, when the army, in three col- 
umns, would advance at once on the stronghold 
of the enemy. 

The engineers immediately went to work to ex- 
temporize floating bridges of such materials as 
they could lay their hands on. Timber left from 
the burnt bridge, cotton-gins, and farm-houses in 
the region, were used for the purpose — one being 
constructed entirely of cotton bales, fastened to- 
gether and planked over. Across these shaking 
structures the troops hurried, and the onward 
march commenced. 

Sherman started at daybreak on the 18th, and 
by half-past nine was between Vicksburg and 
Haines' Bluff, on the Yazoo, thus cutting it, and 
all the forts on that river, from the former place, 
and causing their hasty evacuation by the gar- 
risons, that were compelled to leave their heavy 
guns behind them. 



A SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGN. 185 

Grant was with Sherman when his cokimn 
struck the Wahiut hills. As they rode together 
up the farthest height, where it looks down on 
the Yazoo river, and stood upon the very bluff 
from which Sherman had been repulsed six 
months before, the two soldiers gazed for a mo- 
ment on the long-wished-for goal of the campaign, 
— the high, dry ground on the north of Vicks- 
burg, and the base for their supplies. Sherman 
at last turned abruptly round, and exclaimed to 
Grant : " ' Until this moment, I never thought 
your expedition a success. I never could see the 
end clearly, until now. But this is a campaign ; 
this is a success, if we never take the town.*" The 
other, as usual, smoked his cigar, and made no 
reply. The enthusiastic subordinate had seen the 
dangers of this venturesome campaign so vividly, 
that his vision Avas dimmed for beholding success, 
until it lay revealed on the banks of the Yazoo ; 
but then, with the magnanimity of a noble nature, 
he rejoiced in the victories whose laurels he could 
not claim." * 

McPherson commanding the centre, and Mc- 
Clernand the left, had moved simultaneously, 
and by the 19th of May, the three army coi'ps 
were in position, extending from the Mississippi 
below, to the Yazoo above Vicksburg, thiis com- 
pletely investing the place. 

* Col. Badeau. 



186 LIFE OF GRANT. 

After long months of toiling and waiting — 
after repeated failures, till tlie enemy laughed in 
derision at Grant's futile obstinacy, he had at last, 
by one of the most brilliant military movements 
on record, succeeded in flinging his strong arms 
around the Gibraltar of the Mississippi. From the 
perseverance he had shown from the outset, from 
the tireless energy with which he had w^orked 
undeviatingly towards that single point ; from the 
tremendous blows he had dealt the foe, as he bore 
swiftly down upon it, he had astonished his own 
army, and paralyzed that of his adversary. 

With his base of supplies now firmly established 
at Chickasaw landing, at the foot of those fatal 
bluffs. Grant at once began the siege of Vicksburg. 

It was just twenty days since the campaign be- 
gan. In that time. Grant had marched more 
than two hundred miles, beaten two armies in five 
several battles, captured twenty-seven heavy can- 
non and sixty-one pieces of field artillery, taken 
six thousand five hundred prisoners, and killed 
and wounded at least six thousand rebels more. 
He had forced the evacuation of Grand Gulf, 
seized the capital of the State, destroyed the rail- 
roads at Jackson for a distance of more than 
thirty miles, and invested the principal rebel 
stronghold on the Mississippi river. Separating 
forces twice as numerous as his own, he had beat- 
en first, at Port Gibson, a portion of Pemberton's 



REVIEW OF CAMPAIGN. 187 

army ; then, at Raymond and Jackson, the 
troops under Johnston's immediate command ; 
and again, at Champion Hill and the Big Black 
river, the whole force that Pemberton dared take 
outside the works at Yicksburg. Starting with- 
out teams, and with an average of two days' ra- 
tions in haversacks, he had picked up wagons in 
the country, and subsisted principally on forage 
and rations that he found on the road. Only five 
days' rations had been issued in twenty days, yet 
neither suffering nor complaint was witnessed in 
the command. His losses were six hundred and 
ninety-eight killed, three thousand four hundred 
and seven wounded, and two hundred and thirty 
missins: — in all, four thousand three hundred and 
thirty-five. This is the brief, graphic summing up 
of this extraordinary campaign, by his military 
biographer. 

As w^e remarked in a former work, this cam- 
paign, in its general features, resembled the 
famous Italian one of the young Napoleon. 
There w^as the same grand design to cut up the 
enemy in detail, before he could concentrate his 
overwhelming forces — the same rapidity of move- 
ment and cheerful endurance of privations by the 
troops, the same terrible blows falling fast and 
rapid as successive thunderbolts from heaven, 
rending and paralyzing the foe. And as from the 
high ridge he looked down on the frowning works, 



188 



LIFE OF GRANT. 



■with his gallant army resting at their base, he 
could address his soldiers in almost the language 
of that incomparable leader. " Soldiers, in a fort- 
night you have gained six victories, taken twenty- 
one pairs of colors, fifty-five pieces of cannon, 
several fortresses, and conquered the richest part 
of Piedmont ; you have made fifteen thousand 
prisoners, and killed or wounded more than ten 
thousand men. Destitute of every thing, j^ou 
have supplied all your wants, * * * * the per- 
verse men who laughed at your distress, and re- 
joiced in thought at the triumph of your enemies, 
are confounded and trembling." 



I 



CHAPTER XI. 

ASSAULT OF VICKSBUEG. 

Description of the Enemy's "Works — First Assault — ^Bombardment 
of the City by Porter — Second Assault — Terrific Scene — Hero- 
ism of the Troops — Gallant Deed of Joseph Griffith — The Chi- 
cago Battery — Mistake of McClernand — Grant deceived by it, 
and orders the Assault renewed — Its Failure — Our Loss — 
Grant's Eeasons for making the Assault — Grant resolves on a 
regular siege — Pemberton asks for a Suspension of Hostilities 
— Burial of the dead. 

ViCKSBURG stands on a bluff that rises between 
two and three hundred feet above the Mississippi, 
the sides inland sloping and seamed into deep 
ravines and gullies. 

On the south side, the country was not so 
broken, and here the artificial defences were 
stronger. Sheltered behind such formidable in- 
trenchments, on which were mounted two hun- 
dred cannon, and behind which were massed 
thirty thousand meu, Pemberton felt himself se- 
cure, unless he was starved out. 

But, notwithstanding the formidable aspect of 
these works, Grant, the very day after he had 
completed the investment of the place, attempted 
to carry them by general assault along the rebel 
line. At 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the 19th, 



190 LIFE OF GRANT. 

three vollies of artillery from all the guns which 
he had been able to get into position, was the sig- 
nal to advance. The army surged up against the 
strong defences, only to be forced back at all points. 

Grant now determined to give his overtasked 
army rest for a few days, while he perfected his 
communications Avith his supplies, and got his 
guns into position. In the mean time, he requestr 
ed Porter to open a bombardment of the city with 
his mortar fleet, so as to distract the enemy's at- 
tention from him. He did so, and the huge shells 
fell with such destructive force in the streets, that 
the inhabitants fled to the cellars to hide them- 
selves. 

Every thing being finally completed, Grant de- 
termined, on the 22d, to make another and more 
determined attempt to carry the works by storm. 
Having given explicit instructions to the corps 
commanders, he sent word to Admiral Porter, on 
the 21st, that he should assault the city at ten 
o'clock the next day, and requested him to throw 
shells from his mortars into it durino; the nio-ht, 
and the next morning open with all his gunboats 
upon it, and keep up the firing till half-past ten. 
Porter opened the drama with his mortars, and 
all night long the murky heavens were crossed 
and recrossed with the tracks of the blazing shells, 
that kept dropping with a continuous thunder- 
sound into the devoted city. At three o'clock in 



THE ASSAULT. 191 

the morning, Grant opened with all his batteries, 
and Porter with all his guns, and from river and 
shore thunder answered thunder in prolonged and 
deafening peals, till the earth shook with the re- 
verberations, and the heavens were blotted out by 
the sulphurous clouds that rolled upward above 
the terror-stricken town. As the day dawned, 
the sharpshooters picked off nearly every rebel 
gunner that dared to show his head, so that but 
feeble response Avas made to the cannonading, that 
made every thing tremble. Hoping, by throwing 
his army in a simultaneous charge on the long 
line of the rebel works, he could make a lodg- 
ment at some point. Grant had all the corps com- 
manders set their watches by his own timepiece, 
so that the onset might be like the breaking of 
one mighty wave. He himself took a command- 
ing position near the centre, where he could watch 
the progress of the columns. At the precise mo- 
ment fixed upon, the bugles sounded, and the 
storming parties started forward on a run. 

It is impossible to convey any definite idea of 
this terrific assault, covering as it did so large a 
space. For miles the storming columns dashed 
on the hostile works, throuo;h a desolatino; fire of 
grape and canister, and pressing up the slope, 
attempted to carry them. But a double rank of 
soldiers lay behind each ridge of earth, and mowed 
them down with incessant vollies of musketry. 



192 LIFE OF GRANT. 

This, together with the tangled brushwood, and 
deep and tortuous ravines, rapidly broke up the 
formations, so that even brigades moved forward 
only in detachments, and hence the onset lost all 
its weight. If an outer-work was carried, it was 
found to be commanded by an interior one, that 
rendered its occupation impossible. Deeds of 
unparalled bravery were performed, flags here 
and there were planted on the counterscarps, and 
men that could not make headway against the 
fiery sleet, lay down in the ditches, where hand- 
grenades were rolled down upon them. In one 
instance, a part of the Twenty-second Iowa suc- 
ceeded in crossing the ditch and parapet of a rebel 
outwork ; but, not receiving the support of the 
rest of the column, could not push farther, nor 
drive the enemy from the main work immediately 
in rear. A hand-to-hand fight here ensued, last- 
ing several minutes; hand-grenades also were 
thrown by the rebels in rear, while the national 
troops still commanded the outer parapet. Every 
man m the party but one, was shot down. Ser- 
geant Joseph Griffith, of the Twenty-second Iowa, 
fell at the same time with his comrades, stunned, 
but not seriously hurt. On his recovery, he found 
a rebel lieutenant and sixteen men lying in the 
outwork, still unwounded, though exposed to the 
fire of both friend and foe. He rose, and bade 
them follow him out of the place, too hot for any 



PERSONAL GALLANTRY. 193 

man to stay in and live. The rebels obeyed, and 
calling to the troops outside to cease their firing, 
Grifiith brought his prisoners over the parapet, 
under a storm of rebel shot that killed four of 
those so willing to surrender. 

He was not yet twenty years old, and Grant 
promoted him to a first-lieutenancy the next day, 
for his gallantry. Afterward, he was sent to 
West Point, "where he was known as 'Grant's 
cadet.' " 

In another part of the field. General A. J. 
Smith was ordered by McClernand to get two 
guns up to the very ditch of one of the rebel 
works, and he called on five or six batteries suc- 
cessively, but the captains all protested that it 
was impossible to drag guns by hand down one 
slope, and up another, under fire. Smith, how- 
ever, exclaimed, "I know a battery that will go 
to h — 1, if you order it there ! " So he sent for 
Capt. White, of the Chicago Mercantile Battery, 
and told him what he wanted. White replied, 
"Yes, sir, I will take my guns there." And his 
men actually dragged the pieces over the rough 
ground, by hand, carrying the ammunition in 
their haversacks. One gun was stuck on the way, 
but the other was hauled up so near the rebel 
works, that it was difficult to elevate it sufficiently 
to be of use ; finally, however. White succeeded 
in firing into the embrasure, dismounting a gun. 

9 



194 LIFE OF GRANT. 

The gun was then dragged off down the ravine, 
and, after nightfall, hauled away ; but the am- 
munition being heavy, was left on the field. 

But the gallantry of individuals, the desperate 
determination of storming parties, and the heavy 
onset of devoted columns, were all of no avail, 
and hour after hour wore on in the fruitless strug- 
gle. The dead and wounded spotted the crimson 
slopes, or crowded the ditches into which they 
had pushed, only to fall. The sun was hot, and 
the wounded that lay bleeding under its burning 
rays, panted and cried for water. By noon it 
was evident that the attempt was a failure, and 
Grant was about to order the withdrawal of all 
the troops, when he received a despatch from Mc- 
Clernand, stating that he had gained the enemy's 
works, and, if he could receive reinforcements, 
and a vigorous push be made along the whole 
line at the same time, the place could be carried. 
Grant doubted it, and rode over to Sherman AAdth 
the despatch. Soon another came to the same 
purport, and they kept coming, till by three 
o'clock Grant had received four, and he therefore 
reluctantly gave orders for the assault to be re- 
newed. It was made, but the only result was to 
swell the number of the dead and wounded. Mc- 
Clernand was mistaken, as Grant thought he was, 
for he was confident, from his commanding posi- 



REASONS OF FAILURE. 195 

tion, that he could have discovered any such suc- 
cess as the former assured him was achieved. 

Three thousand men were killed or wounded 
in this desperate but fruitless assault. The pro- 
priety of it has been much doubted. The place 
was not like a walled town, in the defences of 
which breaches had been made ; or where, on the 
open groimd, men could be massed in solid col- 
umns, and by mere weight and reckless sacrifice 
of life, make their way — but miles of irregular 
earthworks stretched across the country, that 
could in no place be approached by a large body 
of troops well massed together. So that, although 
thirty thousand men advanced at the same mo- 
ment, there was no real, heavy onset any where. 
It was desultory fighting along the whole extend- 
ed line; besides, the works were intact. The 
tremendous but short cannonading of the morn- 
ing, had made no impression on them, while an 
army of thirty thousand men, instead of a small 
garrison, defended them. 

Gen. Grant gave several reasons for makino- 
this assault, the chief of which were, that Johnston 
was being daily reinforced, and in a few days 
would be able to fall on his rear ; that the posses- 
sion of Vicksburg would have enabled him to 
turn upon him and drive him from the State; 
that its immediate capture would have prevented 
the necessity of calling for large reinforcements, 



196 LIFE OF GRANT. 

that were needed elsewhere ; and, finally, that the 
troops were impatient to possess Vicksburg, and 
would not have worked in the trenches with the 
same zeal, not believing it necessary, as they did 
after their failure to carry the works by storm. 

There was great force in all, or nearly all, these 
reasons, provided there was a fair chance of suc- 
cess — indeed, 'pro'bahle success was reason* enough 
of itself, without any other. But the fact that 
after the most determined gallantry and devotion 
on the part of officers and men, not the least im- 
pression was made on the formidable works, and 
that amid all the chances to which every battle is 
liable, there came not one gleam of encourage- 
ment from first to last, shows that a victory was 
scarcely possible. There is, however, one reason 
which Grant does not give, which, we think, had 
great weight with him —tliat tlie government and 
people ivould not have been satisfied ivithoiit his 
making the attempt. The spade had fallen into 
contempt ever since the seige of Yorktown, and 
after the successful assault of Fort Donelson, was 
doomed, apparently, to perpetual disgrace, and 
nothing would satisfy the country but " to move 
immediately on the enemy's works." Besides, he 
knew what clamors were raised against him for his 
slow progress above Vicksburg, and how nearly 
he came being removed from command for it. His 
fate had turned on the President's saying, " I 



A SIEGE INEVITABLE. 197 

think I'll try him a little longer.*' Four months 
had already passed, and how could he expect the 
public patience to hold out, perhaps two months 
more, unless it was demonstrated practically that 
it must. In a country like ours, where j^opular 
feeling has to be so much consulted by the gov- 
ernment, and where politics meddles so disas- 
trously in all wa.r movements, it is often necessary 
to make even useless sacrifices, to prevent mis- 
chief. Grant was aware of this, and the fact 
doubtless had much to do Vvdth his attempt to 
carry Vicksburg by storm. The failure settled 
the question, and the people, though restive, were 
compelled to submit again to the old story, week 
after week, " nothino; new from Vicksburs;.'' 

Having settled down to the unpleasant conclu- 
sion that the stronghold could be taken only by 
the slow process of a regular seige. Grant set 
about it at once, with all the vigor and determi- 
nation of one who meant to push it to the speed- 
iest conclusion. Sherman on the right, McPher- 
son in the centre, and McClernand on the south, 
vied with each other in pushing forward saps, and 
covered- ways, etc., towards the rebel works. But 
first, however, the dead had to be removed, that 
in the broiling sun lay festering where they had 
fallen. These, with the decaying carcasses of ani- 
mals that had been driven out of Vicksburg for 
want of forage, and shot bv our soldiers, filled the 



198 LIFE OF GRANT. 

air with an insufferable stench, which threatened 
to breed a pestilence in the crowded city. Pem- 
berton therefore asked for a suspension of hostili- 
ties till these could be removed. This was grant- 
ed, and for several hours, officers and men of the 
hostile armies met, on the most friendly terms, 
outside of the trenches. 






CHAPTER XII. 

THE SIEGE. 

Perilous Position of the Army — "Want of competent Engineers — 
Labor of Grant — Silence of the Enemy — Wooden Mortars — 
Progress of the Siege — Famine in the City — Distress of the In- 
habitants — They hide in Oaves — Explosion of a Mine — Despe- 
rate Fighting— The "Death Hole"— Day fixed for the final 
Assault — Pemberton sees his Condition to be hopeless, 

Geant now perfected his means of support, and 
sent North for reinforcements. He still was be- 
tween two armies, and knew the moment that 
Johnston could assemble a force sufficiently large, 
he would attemj^t to raise the siege. Hence he 
was compelled to erect works in his rear, similar 
to those which the enemy had constructed in front. 
Detachments, in the mean time, were sent out to 
destroy railroads and bridges back of him, as far 
east as they could well penetrate, while Porter 
was requested to land marines and sailors to hold 
Haines' Bluff until troops could be got on ; for 
Grant had no doubt that the first attempt of 
the enemy would be to take this commanding posi- 
tion. It was also additionally fortified, so that at 
length a comparatively small garrison could hold 
it against a large force. 

Grant, in the position he now occupied between 



200 * LIFE OF GRANT. 

two armies, had to be argus-ej^ed, and show a 
sleepless vigilance. In the meantime, the be- 
siegers labored under many embarrassments. The 
army was not supplied with siege guns, nor any of 
the appliances for conducting siege operations. 
Besides, there were but a few skilful eno-ineer offi- 
cers in the army. Being mostly volunteers, they 
were totally ignorant of the mode of procedure in 
approaching elaborate fortifications. Many of the 
materials used, also, had to be extemporized on 
the spot. All this increased sevenfold the labors 
of Grant, for it made it necessary for him to super- 
intend every thing. Details which ordinarily are 
left solely to subordinate officers, he was compell- 
ed to attend to in jDcrson. 

But still the work went on, and approaches and 
covered ways, parallels, saps, and mines, and 
trenches, were pushed forward on every side. In 
the meantime, guns were planted, and parapets 
lined with sharpshooters, to keep down the rebel 
fire, which otherwise would impede the workmen. 

Slowly but steadily the army dug its way up 
the slope — the total length of all the trenches 
reaching, in the end, the enormous distance of 
twelve miles. The enemy made but feeble at- 
tempts to obstruct the progress of the work, part- 
1}^ for want of ammunition, and partly because 
the moment a gunner showed his head above the 
parapets it became a target for a dozen rifles. 



STEADY PROGRESS. 201 

This comparative quiet on the part of the besieged 
greatly facilitated operations. There being no 
mortars for throwing shells over the hostile para- 
pets, wooden ones were constructed out of hollow 
logs, firmly bound with iron hoops, which did 
good service. 

By the last of June, Grant had two hundred 
and twenty guns in position, but amid them all 
there was but one battery of heavy pieces, that 
on the right — which had been landed from the 
gunboats, and was officered by the navy. The 
rebels countermined at some points, though with- 
out energy or skill ; but for the most part they 
lay silent behind their works. This apathy was, 
doubtless, partly owing to the belief that before 
Grant^s operations could be completed, Johnston 
would be thundering in his rear, compelling him 
to abandon them. An occasional sally was made, 
but none of those desperate rushes which so often 
in a single night destroy the labor of days ; and 
Grant kept creeping steadily nearer, preparatory 
to his final spring. The most important advances 
were made along the graveyard and Jackson 
roads by trenches, and through the ravines by 
covered ways. Protected by these. Grant was able 
to plant two entire divisions within two hundred 
yards of the rebel works. (He had begun his ap- 
proaches at the distance of about six hundi-ed 
yards.) 



202 LIFE OF GRA^T. 

In the meantime, food o-ettino; scarce in Vicks- 
burg, the garrison was put on short rations, and 
Pemberton sent word to Johnston of his con- 
dition, saying that he could not hold out much 
longer. The anaconda, in the popular phraseology 
of the day, was tightening his folds day by day, 
around the doomed city. Flour at last got to be 
a thousand dollars a barrel, Confederate money ; 
meal a hundred and fifty dollars a bushel, rum a 
hundred dollars a gallon ; while mule-meat was 
sold at a dollar a pound. The half-starved 
inhabitants, in order to escape the shells and 
missiles of destruction that were constantly hurled 
from Grant's batteries into the town, took reftige 
in caves and holes which they had dug in the 
earth. Gaunt famine stalked along the deserted 
streets, and haggard faces glared out of holes in the 
ground, while gaping walls and tottering chim- 
neys leaning over the wide-spread ruin, added 
increased mournfulness to the scene. The name- 
less dread, the sleepless terror that brooded over 
the spot, were enhanced by the almost unbroken 
silence that rested on the ramparts. Scarcely a 
gun responded to the ceaseless thunder of Grant's 
batteries, and to the beholder, this strange silence 
seemed like the stillness of despair. 

It was plain that this state of things could not 
endure much longer, and mutinous murmurings 
among the troops were kept from breaking forth 



EXPLOSION OF A MINE. 203 

into open rebellion, only by the declaration to-day, 
that Johnston's army was marching to their relief, 
and to-morrow by the promise that rafts and boats 
should be made out of the timber of the houses, 
on which they would be floated over to the west- 
ern bank, and thus escape the pains of surrender. 

A few days before the long-deferred crisis came, 
a mine was exploded under one of the enemy's 
works. The heads of the saps had reached the 
hostile lines at several points, and at one on 
the Jackson road, the mine was carried in for 
thirty-five feet, when three branch mines were run 
out, so as to make the explosion more extensive 
in its effects. Five hundred pounds of powder 
were placed in each of the branch mines, and 
seven hundred in the centre one, making in all 
a ton of powder. 

The 25th of June was the day fixed for explod- 
ing it, and although the enemy had countermined, 
he had effected nothing, and at the appointed 
time it was fired. " The fuse train beinjT* imited, it 
went fizzing and popping through the zigzag line of 
trenches, until for a moment it vanished. Its dis- 
appearance was quickly succeeded by the explo- 
sion, and the mine was sprung. So terrible aspec- 
tacle is seldom witnessed. Dust, dirt, smoke, 
gabions, stockades, timber, gun-carriages, logs — in 
fact, every thing connected with the fort — rose hun- 
dreds of feet into the air, as if vomited forth from a 



204 LIFE OF GRANT. 

volcano;" while the surrounding country shook as 
if in the grasp of an earthquake. A few rebel 
soldiers were seen to rise bodily into the air, two 
of whom came down alive within our lines. But 
most of the troops had been withdrawn, apparent- 
ly in expectation of the explosion. 

At the moment it took place, to add greater 
terror to the scene, the artillery opened all along 
the Imes. 

The crater made was large enough to hold two 
regiments, and a column of troops which had 
stood in readiness to take advantage of the explo- 
sion, leaped at once into it, and a fierce, desperate 
hand to hand struggle took place in the opening. 
The enemy, however, soon retired to an interior 
line, higher up the slope, and which looked down 
on our daring troops below. They at once began 
to hurl down hand-grenades, and roll do^^Ti 
lighted boxes of ammunition, which burst with ter- 
rible effect among the crowded ranks. McPher- 
son s men threw hand-grenades back, but being 
compelled to cast them up hill, they labored at 
fatal disadvantage. They, however, fought and 
fell where they stood, all the afternoon. When 
darkness wrapped the wild ruin, detachments 
from Leggett's brigade relieved each other in 
holding the crater, and the gloom was incessantly 
streaked with the fuses of the grenades or volleys of 
musketry. So deadly was the effect of the mis- 



THE DEATH-HOLE. 205 

- siles of the rebels, pitched from their elevated posi- 
tion, that the soldiers called the . crater " the 
death-hole." 

But although death held high carnival in that 
smoking chasm, all that horrible night our troops 
grimly held it, and at morning began a covered 
way, from which other mines could be run. 

Grant, the moment he found the troops in pos- 
session of the crater, determined to hold it at all 
hazards, and gave his orders to that effect along 
the Imes. To Ord he wrote : 

" McPherson occupies the crater made by the 
explosion. He will have guns in battery there by 
morning. He has been hard at work running 
rifle-pits right, and thinks he will hold all gained. 
Keep Smith's division sleeping under arms to- 
night, ready for an emergency. Their services 
may be required, particularly about daylight. 
There should be the greatest vigilance along the 
whole line." 

Another mine was sprung on the 1st day of 
July, opening another huge abyss under a rebel 
work. 

From this time our mines were run in every 
direction, to open up a path over the demolished 
works, for the assaulting columns. They at 
length brought our trooj^s so near the hostile lines, 
that the workmen on opposite sides could con- 
verse. Grant was now so well up, that he knew 



206 LIFE OF GRANT. 

but a little more demolition of the obstacles before 
him was needed to make a determined assault 
successful. He was the more eager to hasten 
the decisive moment, for he had intercepted des- 
patches from Johnston, informing Pemberton that 
he was on the way to relieve him — while there 
were indications that General Taylor, in Louisi- 
ana, designed to move up on the west shore of 
the river. He determined, therefore, to make the 
final assault on the 6th of July. 

Pemberton saw with alarm the coming; storm. 
The despatches of Johnston could not reach him, 
while he beheld the relentless line of Grant con- 
tracting closer and closer around him with each 
revolving day. The gunboats were thundering 
against him from the river, new batteries were 
springing up in his very face, mines were being 
loaded beneath his feet, the garrison was starving 
and dying from miasma and exhaustion, the hos- 
pitals were crowded with the suffering, men 
and women in utter despair and want clamoring 
for relief, and a terrible assault close at hand, — how 
then could he hold out longer ? No troops ever 
fought more gallantly or suffered more patiently 
than those had done which he commanded. Why 
then should he, from mere pride, expose them, 
weakened and worn out as they were, to all the 
terrors of an assault. Even if it should be re- 
pelled, it would bring no relief to him. The only 



THE FINAL HOUR. 207 

result would be more mines, increased starva- 
tion and death, and then another assault. Grant's 
sap -rollers were already crowning the heights 
he had deemed impregnable, and the final hour 
could not be long delayed. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE SURRENDER. 

Propositions of Pemberton — Interview between him and Grant- 
Impressive Scene — Haughty Bearing of the former — Terms 
Agreed upon — The Rebel Soldiers Stack their Arms — Interview- 
between Grant and Pemberton — Rudeness of the Latter and his 
OflBcers — Grant enters the City io Triumph — Interview between 
him and Porter— The Soldiers Celebrate the Fourth of 
July — Pemberton's Reasons for Surrendering on the Fourth — 
Grant's Despatch to the Government — Parole and Departure 
of the Prisoners — Rebuke of Halleck — Correspondence with 
Banks — The President's Letter — Sherman sent back to Fight 
Johnston — Summing up of the Campaign. 

In this desjDerate condition, Pemberton was 
compelled, bitter as it was, to confess that the 
place must be surrendered. As if he wished to 
shut out the full extent of the disaster, from which 
there was no escape, he, on the 1st of July, sub- 
mitted the following paper to his four division 
generals, Stevenson, Forney, Smith, and Bowen : 
" Unless the siege of Vicksburg is raised, or sup- 
plies are thrown in, it will become necessary, very 
shortly, to evacuate' the place. I see no prospect 
of the former, and there are many great, if not in- 
superable, obstacles in the way of the latter. You 
are, therefore, requested to inform me, vnth. as lit- 



SURRENDER PROPOSED. 209 

tie delay as possible, as to the condition of your 
troops, and tlieir ability to make the marches and 
undergo the fatigue necessary to accomplish a 
successful evacuation." 

All agreed that an attempt at evacuation was 
useless, while two unhesitatingly advised a sur- 
render. Pemberton, therefore, on the 3d of 
July, addressed the following note to Grant : 

" I have the honor to propose to you an armis- 
tice of — hours, with a view to arranofino; terms 
for the capitulation of Vicksburg. To this end, if 
agreeable to you, I will appoint three commis- 
sioners, to meet a like number to be named by 
yourself, at such place and hour as you may find 
convenient. I make this proposition to save the 
further effusion of blood, which must otherwise 
be shed to a frightful extent, feeling myself fully 
able to maintain my position for a yet indefinite 
period. This communication will be handed you, 
under a flag of truce, by Major-General John S. 
Bowen." 

About ten o'clock he hoisted a flag of truce, and 
sent Bowen, with one of his staff, to Grant with 
the proposition. The bearer expressed a desire for 
an interview with Gen. Grant, but the latter 
wished to see no subordinate officer, and refused 
to meet him. Bowen then said, that he thought 
it would be well for the two commandino; o-enerals 
to have an intervie^v^. To this Grant consented, 



210 LIFE OF GRANT. 

saying that, if Pemberton so desired, he would 
meet him at three o'clock in the afternoon, mid- 
way between the lines in front of McPherson's po- 
sition. At the same time he sent the following 
answer to his note : " Your note of this date is 
just received, proposing an armistice of several 
hours for the purpose of arranging terms of capit- 
ulation, through commissioners to be appointed, 
etc. The effusion of blood you propose stopping 
by this course, can be ended at any time you may 
choose, by an unconditional surrender of the city 
and garrison. Men who have shown so much 
endurance and courao-e as those now in Vicksburo^, 
will always challenge the resj^ect of an adversary, 
and, I can assure you, will be treated with all the 
respect due them as prisoners of war. I do not 
favor the proposition of appointing commissioners 
to arrange terms of capitulation, because I have 
no other terms than those indicated above." 

At three o'clock one gun was fired, and imme- 
diately answered by one from the enemy, the sig- 
nal agi'eed upon, if Pemberton desired the inter- 
view. In a few minutes the latter rode out of his 
works, accompanied by Gen. Bowen and Col. 
Montgomery, while Grant, in the other direction, 
rode through his trenches, toward a grassy slope 
that had not been trod by either army. The un- 
wonted spectacle created the most intense excite- 
ment in both armies, and the frowning works on 



THE INTERVIEW. 211 

either side became black with troops, gazing intent- 
ly off on the space where the two commanders were 
slowly approaching each other. The clouds set- 
tled low and dark above the landscape, as if sym- 
bolical of the^fate that huno; over Vicksburo;;. 

Just before meeting they dismounted, and ad- 
vancing on foot, shook hands, addressing each 
other courteously. Pemberton then inquired of 
Grant what terms of capitulation would be allow- 
ed him. The latter replied, those that he had 
stated in his letter of the morning. At this, Pem- 
berton drew himself up haughtily, and replied : 
" If this were all, the conference might terminate, 
and hostilities be resumed immediately." " Very 
well," coolly replied Grant, and turned away. 

The interview seemed ended ; when General 
Bowen, with less pride and more judgment than 
his commander, proposed that two officers from 
each party should withdraw and talk over the mat- 
ter. Grant said that he had no objection ; and the 
two generals, leaving them to consult, walked up 
and down in open view, conversing, Grant, as 
usual, serenely smoking his cigar. 

The day was sultry, and the interview took place 
under a large solitary oak-tree, that stood in the 
open space. In a short time Grant and Pember- 
ton returned to this tree, to hear the result of the 
deliberations. The proposition of General Bowen 
was, that the garrison should march out of Vicks- 



212 LIFE OF GRANT. 

burg with tlieir muskets and field-guns, lea^dng 
the heavy artillery behind them. This, Grant at 
once rejected. The two now entered into a lengthy 
discussion, in which Pemberton pressed hard for 
terms that would break, somewhat, the humilia- 
tion of his downfall. Grant, personally, felt no 
disinclination to this, for, devoid of all mere pride 
of conquest, and averse, from kindness of heart, to 
the infliction of needless pain, he would naturally 
prefer to spare the feelings of a humbled foe. But 
his duty forbade it. No agreement could be had 
on such a proposition, and, after an hour's dura- 
tion, the interview closed, and each returned to 
his lines with the understanding that Grant, after 
further consideration, should, by ten o'clock, send 
his ultimatum. 

The latter had no doubt what this should be. 
Still, willing to yield any thing that he could with 
propriet}^, he called a council of his officers and 
submitted the question to them. They almost 
unanimously agreed on terms, but Grant would 
not accept them, and he concluded to act, as he 
had done in all his campaigns and battles thus far, 
on his own judgment. He therefore sent the fol- 
lowing letter : 

Headquaetees, Depaetmext of Texxessee, ) 
Near Vicksbueg, July 3, ] 863. \ 

Lieutenant-General J. C. PEMBEKTOi^, commanding Con- 
federate forces, Yicksburg, Miss. : 
General : In conformity with the agreement of this 



THE SURRENDER. 213 

afternoon, I will submit tlie following proposition for the 
surrender of the city of Vicksburg, public stores, &c. 
On jour accepting the terms proposed, I will march in 
one division, as a guard, and take possession at eight 
o'clock to-morrow morning. As soon as paroles can be 
made out and signed by the oflSicers and men, you will 
be allowed to march out of our lines, the officers taking 
with them their regimental clothino;, and staff", field, and 
cavalry officers one horse each. The rank and file will 
be allowed all their clothing, but no other property. 

If these conditions are accepted, any amount of ra- 
tions you may deem necessary can be taken from the 
stores you now have, and also the necessary cooking 
utensils for preparing them ; thirty wagons, also, count- 
ing two two-horse or mule teams as one. You will be 
allowed to transport such articles as cannot be cari'ied 
along. The same conditions will be allowed to all sick 
and wounded officers and privates, as fast as they be- 
come able to travel. The paroles for these latter must 
be signed, however, whilst officers are present, authorized 
to sign the roll of prisoners. 

I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient ser- 
vant, U. S. Geant, Major-General. 

On the reception of this, Pemberton called a 
council of war, and submitted it to them. All but 
one advised him to accept the conditions offered. 
He concluded to do so, and late at night sent 
the following answer : " I have the honor to ac- 
knowledge the receipt of your communication of 
this date, proposing terms of capitulation for this 
garrison and post. In the main, your terms are 
accepted ; but in justice both to the honor and 
spirit of my troops, manifested in the defence of 
Vicksburg, I have to submit the following amend- 



214 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ments, which, if acceded to by you, will perfect the 
agreement between us. At ten o'clock a. m., to- 
morrow, I propose to evacuate the Avorks in and 
around Vicksburg, and to surrender the city and 
garrison under my command, by marching out 
with my colors and arms, stacking them in front 
of my present lines, after which you will take pos- 
session. Officers to retain their side-arms and 
personal property, and the rights and property of 
citizens to be respected." 

This reached Grant at midnio;ht, and he imme- 
diately replied : 

" I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your 
communication of 3d July. The amendment proposed 
by you cannot be acceded to in full. It will be neces- 
sary to furnish every officer and man with a parole signed 
by himself, which, with the completion of the roll of 
prisoners, will necessarily take some time. Again, I can 
make no stipulations with regard to the treatment of 
citizens and their private property. While I do not 
propose to cause them any undue annoyance or loss, I 
cannot consent to leave myself under any restraint by 
stipidations. The property which officers will be allowed 
to take with them will be as stated in my proposition 
of last evening : that is, officers will be allowed their 

Erivate baggao;e and side-anns, and mounted officers one 
orse each. If you mean by your proposition for each 
brigade to march to the front of the lines now occupied 
by it, and stack arms at ten o'clock a. m., and then re- 
turn to the inside and remain as prisoners until properly 
paroled, I will make no objections to it. Should no 
modification be made of your acceptance of mj terms 
by nine o'clock a. m., T shall regard them as having 
been rejected, and act accordingly. Should these terms 



CLOSING SCENES. 215 

be accepted, white flags shall be displayed along your 
lines, to prevent such of my tjooj^s as may not have 
been notified, from tiring on your men. 
I am, General, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 

U. S. Gkant, Major-General U. S. A. 

By a singular coincidence, the next morning 
was the Fourth of July, our great anniversary day, 
and at ten o'clock the garrison marched out by 
regiments, and stacked their arms on the grassy 
slope in front of the works they had defended so 
long and gallantly, hanging their colors upon the 
centre. With that downcast look always so sad 
in a brave soldier's face, they laid off their knap- 
sacks, belts, cartridge-boxes and cap-pouches, and 
thus shorn of their arms and accoutrements, and 
leaving their colors behind them, slowly wheeled 
back into their works. Not a word had been 
spoken, save the few words of command ne- 
cessary from the officers in charge, and these 
were uttered in a low, subdued tone, as one speaks 
at a funeral. The spectacle would have been 
mournful if the humbled foe had been an invader ; 
but it was doubly so when it was remembered that 
they were citizens of a common country, brethren 
of the same family, and the very soil on which they 
stacked their arms was their own birtln-ight. 

The painful ceremony lasted over an hour, and 
when it was over, the rebel and Federal officers 
mounted in haste and swept away towards the city. 



216 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Thirty-one thousand six hundred men, on this 
eventful morning, surrendered themselves prisoners 
of war, of whom fifteen were generals. 

Pemberton, at this time, was at Forney's head- 
quarters, a stone house, built on the outskirts of 
the city, with vdde verandahs, and almost hid 
among the tropical trees. Seated in a damask 
cushioned rocking-chair, he sat with his head bent 
as if lost in sad reflections, while pride and mor- 
tification seemed struggling for the mastery in his 
swarthy face. Tall, with black eyes and hair, and 
a full flowing beard, he was a conspicuous object 
on the verandah, which was filled with officers. 
It was a hot day, and the doors and windows 
were all open to let in a little air, through which 
also stole the triumphant strains of the distant 
regimental bands. Grant with his staff trotted 
leisurely towards this house, and dismounting, 
stepped on to the piazza, and advanced towards 
the rebel general. All looked up as he entered, 
and could scarce restrain their surprise, when in- 
stead of a tall and commanding form, clad in the 
rich uniform befitting so grand an occasion, they 
saAV before them a man of small stature, thick- 
set, and round shouldered, dressed in a plain suit 
of blue flannel, and with nothing to distinguish 
his rank but two stars on his shoulders. Pember- 
ton received his salutations coldly, and had not 
the civility to rise and offer him a chair. His 



RUDE TREATMENT. 217 

officers were all seated on tlie piazza, but accept- 
ing their commander s conduct as the rule of 
politeness, not one of them offered Grant a seat. 
Not even the swords at their side, which he in 
his generosity allowed them to retain, could 
prompt them to common civility. Among those 
officers it is hard to believe that there was not 
many who were ashamed of this want of courtesy, 
and persisted in it only because the sullen de- 
meanor and discourteous tone of their chief made 
them feel that any other course would be displeas- 
ing to him. 

Thus for five minutes the conqueror stood con- 
versing with his prisoner seated in his richly- 
cushioned rocking-chair. This shameful spectacle 
was at length more than the gentlemanly feelings 
of one of the officers present could endure, and he 
rose and offered Grant a seat. The latter, however, 
occupied it but a few minutes, when feeling very 
thirsty from his hot and dusty ride, he asked for 
a drink of water. Not one offered to get it or 
ordered a servant to do so ; instead, he was cav- 
alierly told that he would find some inside of the 
house. Passing within, he groped around, and 
at last came across a negro, who brought him a 
glass. Grant then returned to the piazza, and 
finding his seat had been taken in his absence, 
again stood and conversed for nearly a half an 
hour with his rude captive. Notwithstanding his 

10 



218 LIFE OF GRANT. 

incivility, Pemberton did not hesitate to request 
Grant to supply his troops with rations, to which 
the latter assented, and inquired how many were 
needed. " Thirty -two thousand," was the reply, 
which was a surprise to Grant, who had all the 
while labored under the impression that the garri- 
son did not reach much over half that number. 

In the meantime, Logan s division, to which 
had been assigned the honor of first entering the 
city, because it had pushed its approaches nearest 
to the rebel works, came marching along, the bands 
playing exulting strains. Grant bidding his surly 
host good morning, mounted his horse, and put- 
ting himself at the head of the division, marched 
into the city, while the pallid inhabitants stole out 
of their caves to gaze on the strange spectacle. 
The tattered banners that had been borne over 
many a tierce battle-field, stooped and rose proud- 
ly along the streets, and at last were carried in 
triumph to the top of the Court House, where 
their appearance was greeted with cheers. Grant 
then passed on down to the wharf to visit Ad- 
miral Porter, and exchange congratulations with 
him on their joint victory. The gallant Admiral 
in his flag-ship, followed by the whole fleet, 
covered Avith flags, and the guns firing a feu de 
joie that made the welkin ring, passed down until 
he came in fi'ont of the town, when he rounded 
to and swept up to the levee. As Grant and hig 



I 



INTERVIEW WITH PORTER. 219 

officers stepped on board, from ship and shore 
went up thundering hurrahs — flags dipped in 
graceful salutations to the hero, while the heavy 
guns roared out their wild acclaim. 

The meeting between him and the Admiral was 
of the most cordial kind, and never did Porter s 
deck witness a gayer or more gladsome sight 
than it presented at that moment, crowded with 
the gallant officers of the army and navy, ming- 
ling their warm congratulations. After months 
of unexampled toil against adverse fate, and 
from many a fierce fight, in which they had 
been together, it was glorious at last to see the 
national colors flying from those lofty bluff's. 

The interview was long and pleasant, but just 
before dark Grant again returned to the shore, and 
mounting his horse, rode back to his old camp in 
the field, while the soldiers made the nightly 
heavens above Vicksburg red with fire-works, in 
commemoration of the Fourth of July. It had 
been a glorious Fourth to the national troops, and 
it was thought strange that Pemberton should 
have allowed the capitulation to take place on a 
day that w^ould make the victors feel their triumph 
so much more keenly. In his report he gives the 
following reason for it : 

" If it should be asked why the 4th of July 
was selected as the day for surrender ? the answer 
is obvious. I believed that upon that day I 



220 LIFE OF GRANT. 

should obtain better terras. Well aware of the 
vanity of our foes, I knew they would attach vast 
importance to the entrance, on the 4th of July, 
into the stronghold of the great river, and that, to 
gratify their national vanity, they would yield 
then what could not be extorted from them at any 
other time." 

This evinced a considerable shrewdness on his 
part, and no doubt most of the officers would have 
granted easier terms on this day than any other. 

That night Grant sat down in his quiet quar- 
ters, and while the distant heavens were bright 
with rockets, wrote the following despatch to the 
Government : 

"The enemy surrendered this morning. The 
only terms allowed is their parole as prisoners of 
war. This I regard as a great advantage to us, 
at this moment. It saves, probably, several days 
in the capture, and leaves troops and transports 
ready for immediate service." That is all he has 
to say respecting one of the greatest victories of 
modem times, not only in the number of prisoners 
taken, the amount of war material captured, but 
in the importance of the position obtained, with 
reference to the final issue of the contest. Noth- 
ing could be more unpretending and commonplace. 
Caesar, after a great victory, could say, in drama- 
tic conciseness, "Veni, vidi, vici" — Commodore 
Perry, in similar circumstances, in laconic but 



SIMPLICITY AND SHREWDNESS COMBINED. 221 

triumphant language, " We have met the enemy, 
and they are ours," while Grant announces a vic- 
tory greater than either w^ith apparently as little 
feeling or excitement as he would the fact that he 
had made for the government a tolerably fair pur- 
chase of a drove of army-mules. This simplicit}^ 
never deserts him. Like his imperturbable seren- 
ity, it remains the same under all circumstances. 

The rank and file of the rebel army exhibited 
no such feelino-s as disoraced their commander, 
but mino-led, in the most familiar manner, with 
the Union soldiers, and could be seen vralking arm 
in arm along the streets, chatting familiarly as old 
acquaintances. 

Seven hundred of the prisoners refused to be 
paroled, preferring to remain as prisoners. Even 
if the relentless conscription respected their parole, 
they had no desire to serve again, after exchange, 
in the rebel army. Pemberton requested Grant to 
compel them to accept their parole ; but the latter 
declined to interfere in the matter. He then re- 
quested that a portion of his troops be allowed to 
take arms with them in order to prevent the rest 
from deserting on the road. This Grant also de- 
clined to do, as not coming within the line of his 
duty. He did not care to give the chief reason 
that actuated him in refusing this request, viz: 
that he wished the very thing that Pemberton de- 
sired to prevent. 



222 LIFE OF GllANT. 

It took a few days to complete the paroles, but 
every thing being at length arranged, on Saturday 
forenoon, the 11th, the weaponless army, bereft 
of all its standards, took up its mournful march. 
Long lines of national infantry extended along 
each side of the road for some distance beyond the 
intrenchments, as guards ; and between these, with 
bowed heads, the silent columns slowly defiled. 
Many had fought fi'om a sense of duty under the 
standards they now left behind ; from the eyes of 
these the tears fell hot and fast ; others turned to 
take a last look at the works behind which they 
had battled so long and well, and suffered so ter- 
ribly, while others, sullen and desponding, march- 
ed doggedly on. Their brave conquerors, forget- 
ting their triumph in the feeling of pity for their 
gallant but misguided countrymen, exhibited none 
of the victors' pride, and uttered no word of taunt or 
ho2ist In dead silence they let them pass, till the 
last column disappeared around the winding road, 
and then wheeled, and marched back to their 
quarters. 

The first response that Grant received from 
Washington, after this great victory, was a rebuke 
from Halleck for having paroled the prisoners, 
and ordering him peremptorily not to carry out 
his agreement, if it had not been already done — 
fearing, he said, that the enemy would not regard 
the parole as binding. It is true, he afterwards 



A STRONG LETTER. 223 

complimented liim highly for his brilliant strategy, 
but that did not lessen the painful effect of this 
first rebuke. The people, however, had nothing 
but plaudits for him. Hoisting of flags, firing of 
cannon, and deafening shouts, followed the tidings 
of his great victory the leng-th and breadth of the 
land, and his name dwelt on every tongue. The 
victory of Gettysburg, at the same time, swelled 
the national enthusiasm to the highest pitch ; and 
the shout that rose from the valley of the Missis- 
sippi met that which swelled up the Atlantic 
slope, till the Alleghanies shook with the glad 
acclaim. 

Four days after. Port Hudson fell, thus opening 
the Mississippi its entire length. This result 
Grant had anticipated, when he refused again and 
again Banks' urgent request to send him troops. 
Once, in reply to a request for ten thousand men, 
he wrote with an earnestness not usual with him, 
unless deeply roused. He said : " Our situation 
is, for the first time during the entire Western 
campaign, what it should be. We have, after 
great labor and extraordinary risk, secured a po- 
sition which should not be jeopardized by any de- 
tachments whatever. * * I have ample means 
to defend my present position, and effect the re- 
duction of Vicksburg within twenty days, if the 
relation of affairs which now obtains remains un- 
changed. But, detach ten thousand men from 



224 LIFE OF GEANT. 

my command, and I cannot answer for the result. 
* * * I need not describe the severity of the 
labor to which my command must necessarily be 
subjected, in an operation of such magnitude as 
that in which I am now engaged. Weakened by 
the detachment of ten thousand men, or even 
half that number, with the circumstances entirely 
changed, I should be crippled beyond redemp- 
tion." 

He had not spent months to get just where he 
wanted to be, to risk success by weakening his 
forces. He knew well that Port Hudson would 
fall of itself the moment that Vicksburg surren- 
dered. Banks' sacrifice of life before the former 
place was as useless as the manner of doing it was 
unwise. Grant was aware that Banks' request 
was in accordance with the President's wishes, 
and this fact made him feel the more deeply, but 
he resolved that nothing but a peremptory order 
from headquarters should make him relax for a 
moment the iron grasp he had got on Vicksburg. 
After its surrender, he received the following 
letter from the President, acknowledging his mis- 
take: 

Executive Mansion, Washington, July 13, 1863. 

To Major-General Gkant : 

My Deak' General : I do not remember that you and 
I ever met personally. I write this now as a grateful 
acknowledgment for the almost inestimable service you 
have done the country. I wish to say a word further. 



A CANDID LETTER. 225 

"When you first readied the vicinity of Vicksburg;, I 
thought you should do what you finally did — march the 
troops across the neck, run the batteries with the trans- 
ports, and thus go below; and I never had any faith, 
except a general hope that you knew better than I, that 
the Yazoo Pass expedition, and the like, could succeed. 
When you got below and took Port Gibson, Grand 
Gulf, and the vicinity, I thought you should go do^Ti 
the river and join General Banks ; and when you turned 
northward east of the Big Black, I feared it was a mis- 
take. I now wish to make a personal acknowledgment 
that you were right and I was wrong. 

Yours, very truly, A. Lincoln. 

Nothing shows the tireless activity of Grant, and 
the terrible relentlessness with which he clung to 
and pushed his foe, more than his action on the night 
preceding the surrender of Vicksburg. Foresee- 
ing clearly that its capitulation was inevitable, he 
directed Sherman to march back to Jackson and 
give Johnston battle, and drive him from the Mis- 
sissippi Central Kailroad. He was not a man to 
sit down for a moment and enjoy victories already 
won, when others w^ere to be achieved. It was 
hard for troops that had struggled and waited so 
long for the overthrow of the stronghold, not to 
be allowed to witness its downfall, and share in 
the triumph. But the order was peremptory, and 
the tired troops started off, followed, soon as the 
capitulation w^as signed, by Ord and Steele ; and 
marched back under a hot July sun for fifty miles, 
over a parched and pestilential country — with no 

10* 



226 LIFE OF GRANT. 

water but such as could be gathered from swamps, 
to quench their thirst. 

Rebuilding the bridges they had previously de- 
stroyed, the army pushed on to Jackson, where 
Johnston lay strongly entrenched. Holding him 
here, in the expectation that he would be assault- 
ed, Sherman sent out expeditions in every direc- 
tion, destroying railroads and rolling-stock and 
fixtures, while at the same time he gradually 
extended his lines around the place, till both ex- 
tremities touched Pearl Kiver. Johnston, now 
thoroughly alarmed for his safety, decamped in 
the night, and fled into the interior, destroying 
the railroad running east behind him, as he re- 
treated. Sherman then slowly marched back, 
having lost about a thousand men in the expedi- 
tion. 

This finished the campaign of Vicksburg, the 
total result of which footed up in losses to Grant 
of killed and Avounded and missing, eight thou- 
sand eight hundred and seventy-three ; to the 
enemy, of fifty-six thousand, besides the vast de- 
struction of material of war and public property, 
and the capture of cannon. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

Employment of Negro Troops — Grant's Views respecting it — 
Threatens to retaliate if they are abused when captured — Op- 
posed to opening Trade with the South — Proposes an Ex- 
pedition against Mobile — His Application rejected — Protects 
his Soldiers against the Extortion of Steamboat Captains — Wife 
visits him — Her enthusiastic Reception in St. Louis — Public 
Dinner at Memphis — Thrown from his Horse at New Orleans 
and laid up — Long Confinement — Ordered to reinforce Rose- 
crans — Leaves Vicksburg — Placed over all the Troops in the 
Mississippi Valley — Interview with the Secretary of War. 

Grant's known anti-abolition principles, as dis- 
tinguished from that party which, in former years, 
waged perpetual war on the South, and his 
democratic tendencies, so far as he had any politics 
previous to the rebellion, caused many to imagine 
that he would be entirely opposed to the employ- 
ment of negroes as soldiers — a measure recently 
determined on by the Government. But they 
were mistaken. Not merely as a subordinate 
was he willing to obey the behests of his Govern- 
ment, but as a wise commander, he saw that 
they could be employed with great benefit to the 
country — especially in garrisoning places on the 
Mississippi, and thus releasing Avhite troops to be 
used in the field. Hence, only a week after the 



228 LIFE OF GRANT. 

surrender of Vicksburg, he told the Adjutant- 
General of the army, that he was " anxious to get 
as many of those negro regiments as possible," 
which had been ordered by the Government. He 
said, " I am particularly anxious to organize a 
regiment of heavy artillerists from the negroes, to 
garrison this place, and shall do so as soon as possi- 
ble." The President had written to him person- 
ally on the subject, for he had sanguine expecta- 
tions respecting the great results of such a 
measure — thinking, in fact, that it alone would 
destroy the Confederacy. He said, "It is a re- 
source, which, if vigorously applied now, will soon 
close this contest." Grant did not share these ex- 
travagant expectations. He never was carried 
away by any mere theory. He viewed every thing 
by the light of common sense ; and although at the 
outset of the war, like thousand of others who 
had never studied carefully the history of civil 
revolutions, he thought that a few battles would 
end it, he had long since abandoned that idea. 
He well knew that many fierce conflicts and a long 
struggle, were before the country. Neither did he 
believe, like the dreamers at Washington, that 
emancipation or the employment of negroes 
would do it. He looked upon these all only as so 
many measui^es to help forward an end which 
could be reached only by hard fighting and deci- 
sive victories in the field. The raising of a hun- 



NEGRO TROOPS. 229 

clred negro regiments, was to him simply a hun- 
dred thousand soldiers added to the army, nothing 
more nor less. The Southern commanders were 
inclined at first not to recognize negroes as soldiers, 
especially those who were runaway slaves, as under 
their laws they were required to turn them over to 
their former masters. 

Grant did not trouble himself about the logic 
of the question — a man wearing the uniform of a 
United States soldier, and fighting imder its flag, 
was entitled to receive the treatment due an Ameri- 
can soldier. Hearing that this had not been 
granted to some prisoners captured at Milliken's 
Bend, but on the contrary, that they had been bru- 
tally hung, he wrote to General Taylor (son of Gene- 
ral Taylor, the former President), within whose com- 
mand the crime was committed, and after reciting 
the circumstances, said : " I feel no inclination to 
retaliate for the offence of irresponsible persons, 
but if it is the policy of any general intrusted 
with the command of troops, to show no quarter, 
or to punish with death prisoners taken in battle, 
I will accept the issue. It may be, you purpose 
a different line of policy towards black troops, and 
officers commanding them, to that practised to- 
wards wliite troops. If so, I can assure you that 
these colored troops are regularly mustered into 
the service of the United States. The Govern- 
ment, and all the officers under the Government, 



230 LIFE OF GRANT. 

are bound to give the same protection to those 
troops, that they do to any other troops." No 
pompous declamation here — no windy threats, 
which so many delighted to indulge in, for the sake 
of the pleasant sound they would make Avhen re- 
ported in the newspapers ; but a quiet, calm utter- 
ance of his duty, and a settled determination to 
perform it. He would hang a rebel general mth 
the same serenity that he smoked his cigar, in the 
discharge of that. General Taylor replied, that 
he would punish all acts of inhumanity, or that 
were unbecoming a soldier ; but that his Govern- 
ment required its officers to turn over all captured 
negroes to the civil authority, to be dealt with 
according to law. 

The closing of the Mississippi had been a severe 
blow to the Western States, whose commerce had 
formerly been extensive with the South ; hence, 
soon as it was opened, they anxiously desired to 
open trade Avith that portion which had sur- 
rendered to our arms. This was natural — else, 
they said, why expend so much time and treasure, 
and men, if it is to remain practically as much 
closed to us as ever. Chase, the Secretary of the 
Treasury, being himself a Western man, felt the 
pressure of Western opinion, and urged that trade, 
vmder certain restrictions, should be allowed within 
districts occupied by our military forces. This, 
Grant respectfully but steadily opposed. Though 



NO TRADE WITH THE SOUTH. 231 

he said he held himself in readiness to obej any 
order he should receive, he remonstrated against 
the course, as certain to inflict serious injury on 
the Union cause. He declared it would be impos- 
sible, if trade were once allowed, to prevent the 
rebels from being supplied with every thing they 
wanted. He had seen how the thing worked in 
Kentucky, and he told the Government plainly, 
that it could not adopt any general rule in regard 
to trade under which " all sorts of dishonest men 
would not engage in it, taking any oath or obliga- 
tion necessary to secure the privilege." Smugglmg, 
he said, would be carried on in spite of the greatest 
vigilance, which would give the South, practically, 
the advantage of open commerce. His wise, 
sagacious counsels, however, were not followed, 
and his predictions proved true, while the per- 
petual annoyances to which it subjected him, were 
almost past endurance. Jews, and unscrupulous 
speculators of every kind, blockaded his headquar- 
ters, often rufBing that serene temper which noth- 
ing else seemed able to disturb. Anecdotes are 
told of the summary manner in which he some- 
times dealt with these pestilent fellows, suggestive 
of any thing but military formality. 

Although, immediately after the fall of Vicks- 
burg. Grant sent off troops to Banks, and other- 
wise weakened his army, still he did not propose 
to remain idle. A large force could be assembled 



232 LIFE OF GRANT. 

in a short time, and he thought if a sudden, vigor- 
ous blow were struck at Mobile, it could be taken. 
This would open the whole southern tier of States 
to our arms, and Grant proposed an expedition 
against it to Halleck. Meeting with a rebuff, he 
returned to it again in a few days, declaring that 
if permission were given him, he felt certain of 
success. Admiral Porter was of the same opinion ; 
but no solicitations could move Halleck. He 
wanted "to clear out western Louisiana," &c., and 
the result of his grand scheme was, that instead 
of the capture of Mobile, we had the Ked River 
expedition under Banks, after cotton, which ended 
so disgi'acefullj, and which come so near destroy- 
ing our fleet on the Mississippi. Halleck was 
always inclined to squander our forces in expedi- 
tions which, even if successful, were barren of re- 
sults that bore directly on the issue of the struggle. 
Grant always believed in striking vital points first, 
kno'sving that if the heart was once reached, the 
extremities would die of themselves ; Avhile Hal- 
leck wished to reach the citadel of life by slow 
approaches. 

Lincoln coincided with the General-in-Chief, re- 
specting the jMobile expedition, and ^vrote to Grant 
so, and he was therefore compelled reluctantly to 
give it up, and remain idle at Vicksburg. 

Many officers and soldiers, some of them on 
account of sickness and wounds, and others, whose 



HIS CARE OF THE SOLDIERS. 233 

absence from duty was necessary, obtained short 
furloughs, and repaired North. Grant, ever mind- 
ful of the Avelfare of his men, issued an order 
forbiddino; the steamboats that cleared from Vicks- 
burg for Cairo, from charging the soldiers more 
than five dollars, and the officers more than seven, 
for their passage. Regardless of this order, the 
steamer Hope had taken on board a large number 
of both — the captain charging them from ten to 
twentj-five dollars apiece. Grant, hearing of it, 
immediately despatched an officer, accompanied 
by a guard, with the order to the caj^tain to refund 
at once all the money received by him as fare, 
over five dollars to enlisted men, and seven dollars 
to officers, or submit to imprisonment for disobe- 
dience, and have his boat confiscated. The aston- 
ished captain looked first at the order and then at 
the guard which had been sent down to enforce 
it, and sullenly paid back the money which he had 
received in excess of the fare as fixed by Grant. 
This care of them by their commander, spread 
like wild-fire among the soldiers, and they made 
the shore rin^ with their hurrahs. On beinoj 
informed of the various impositions practised on 
furloughed soldiers and officers, by steamboat men, 
he became very indignant, and said, " I will teach 
them, if they need the lesson, that the men who 
have perilled their lives to open the Mississippi 



234 LIFE OF GRANT. 

river for their benefit, cannot be imposed upon 
with impunity." 

Grant has none of that electric fire, that mag- 
netic sympathy, such as distinguished Napoleon, 
and made the meanest soldier proud to die for him. 
There is nothing dramatic about him. He holds 
the affections of his troops by a different bond — 
by an attachment that springs from profound re- 
spect for his ability, forecast, and readiness to 
share all their toils, privations and danger, and a 
parental care for their welfare. 

In the short rest to which he was now doomed 
by the mistaken policy at Washington, his wife 
had time to visit him. For weary months, not 
only he, but his little son, not yet old enough to 
do without his mother s good-night kiss, had been 
either sleeping in pestilential marshes, or riding 
amid the storm of battle, and her heart yearned 
to see them, and the moment that victory gave 
her free access to them, she hastened to their em- 
brace. Reaching St. Louis on her way down, her 
person was recognized, and immediately the hotel 
at which she stopped was thronged by the excited 
populace. Bands of music struck up triumphant 
airs, the multitude shouted the name of Grant, 
and so great was their enthusiasm, that they re- 
fused to leave until she presented herself on the 
balcony. Leaning on the arm of Brigadier-Gen- 
eral Strong, she stood a moment before the sea of 



A PUBLIC DINNER. 235 

upturned faces, and was received with the wildest 
demonstrations of delio;ht. General Strono; re- 
turned thanks in her behalf, in a brief s[)eech. 

In the mean time, Halleck had ordered Grant 
to send the Thirteenth Corps, under Ord, to Gen- 
eral Banks, at New Orleans, and otherwise assist 
him in his plan of operations against Texas. 

In the latter part of this month, he visited Mem- 
phis to look after affairs in that portion of his de- 
partment, when the citizens asked him to accept the 
honors of a public dinner. In complying with 
their request, after thanking them for the honor 
done him personally, he said : 

I thank yon, too, in the name of the noble army I 
have the honor to command. It is composed of men 
whose loyalty is proved by their deeds of heroism and 
their willing sacritices of life and health. They will 
rejoice with me that the miserable adherents of the re- 
bellion, whom their bayonets have driven from this fair 
land, are being replaced by men who acknowledge hu- 
man hberty as the only true foundation of human gov- 
ernment. May your efforts to restore your city to the 
cause of the Union be as successful as have been theirs 
to reclaim it from the despotic rule of the leaders of 
the rebellion. I have the honor to be, gentlemen, yoiu* 
very obedient servant, IT. S. Gkaijt. 

When the grand event of the evening, the toast 
to himself, was given, the company were taken 
quite aback by his declining to make an}' response 
■ — delegating to one of his staff the duty of re- 
turning his thanks. He then made the excuse, 



236 LIFE OF GRANT. 

which has since become a standing one, that he 
was not accustomed to public speaking. In this, 
he differs from any other distinguished military 
man of the country that we know of. 

The next day, he started for New Orleans, to see 
General Banks, who was on the eve of his depart- 
ure for Texas, in order to learn his plans, and 
ascertain if he could be of any assistance to him. 
While there, a grand military review took place in 
his honor, at Carrollton. "What a magnificent 
spectacle ! What cheers rent the air, when the his- 
toric colors of the old Thirteenth Corps dipped 
to the hero of Vicksburg as he passed along the 
lines, followed by a brilliant cortege of captains and 
staff officers, who had gi^eat difficulty in keeping 
up with the general, as he dashed along at a full 
gallop on a magnificent charger borrowed from 
Banks." Taking his place under an oak, he re- 
viewed the troops, and it was noticed that, as they 
passed, he lifted his hat with a deeper reverence 
to the veteran Thirteenth Corps, bearing the flags 
that had waved in the storm of every battle from 
Donelson to Vicksburg. But, before the splen- 
did pageant was over, an accident occurred, that 
marred the enjoyment of the day, and came near 
inflicting an irreparable loss on the country. 

Though no man possesses a firmer seat in the 
saddle than Grant, and there is not, probabl}^, a 
more accomplished horseman in the whole country, 



A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. 237 

yet by a sudden, unaccountable movement in the 
animal he bestrode, he was unhorsed in a twink- 
ling, and dashed with great violence to the ground. 
So heavy was the fall, and severe the injuries he 
received, that he never rose from the bed to which 
he was carried, for twenty days, and during all 
that time was unable to change his position. He 
could only lie on his back, and in this state was 
eventually carried on board of a boat and trans- 
ported to Vicksburg. He remained here confined 
to his bed until the 25th of September, when he 
was able to hobble about on crutches. Fortu- 
nately, this long incapacity for the field occurred 
in the most favorable time for the country, as he 
had nothing to do except hold his own in his de- 
partment, and give orders of minor importance. 
Banks was carrying out his Texas expedition, 
Rosecrans, with wavering fortune, was closing up 
his military career around Chattanooga, while 
Bumside of the Ohio department, was holding his 
own at Knoxville. But about the middle of Sep- 
tember, Halleck, who had heard that Bragg, 
from whose hands Bosecrans had just wrested 
Chattanooga, was being heavily reinforced, tele- 
graphed to Grant to send all his available force to 
that place. The despatch, however, was delayed 
on the road, so that it did not reach Grant until 
the 23d of the month. He was still in bed at 
Vicksburg, but immediately sent orders to Sher- 



238 LIFE OF GRANT. 

man to start one of his divisions for Chattanooga 
as speedily as possible. He also stopped a divis- 
ion of McPherson, which was sailing south to 
reinforce Steele, and directed it to return at once 
to Memphis, where Hurlbut was in command, 
while the latter was ordered to send it, with two 
divisions of his own and what other troops he 
could spare, to the same point. Grant bent his 
whole energies to carry out the wishes of Govern- 
ment, and placed all of his army, except Avhat 
was necessary for garrison duty, at the disposal of 
Rosecrans. The effort, however, came too late — 
the battle of Chickaraauga had been fought a few 
days before, and Rosecrans, defeated with heavy 
loss, was shut up in Chattanooga, and in great 
peril of total destruction. 

Events were hurrying Grant forward to the 
high command he was destined to reach, faster 
than the Government proposed. On the last of 
the month, Halleck, now fully alive to the peril- 
ous state of things in the Cumberland department, 
telegraphed to Grant, that as soon as he was able, 
he wished him to go to Nashville, and take charge 
of the movement of troops, that Bosecrans was in 
such pressing need of The day before, however, 
Grant had telegraphed : " I am now ready for the 
field, or any duty I may be called to perform." 
He was ready for the field, "or any duty" that 
his country might require of him, though he was 



A MONUMENT TO HIM. 239 

just out of bed, and with difficulty could get 
about on his crutches. To men of less iron will 
or energy, this bodily condition would have seem- 
ed any thing but readiness for the battle-field. 

Two or three days after, he received a despatch 
requesting him if possible to come to Cairo, the 
nearest point with which telegraphic communica- 
tion could be kept up. He nnmediately started 
off, and bade, as it turned out, good-bye forever to 
Vicksburg and the army of the Tennessee — the 
child of his own raising, the sharer of his adverse 
fortunes and his glory, and which had become en- 
deared to him by common toils, and dangers, and 
sufferings, and triumphs. But no defeats or victo- 
ries to come could ever obliterate the memories that 
clustered around that place, the capture of which 
was the culmination of one of the most brilliant 
campaigns recorded in military annals. And on 
the spot where stood the oak under which his in- 
terview with Pemberton took place, and which 
soon disappeared, root and branch, as relics of the 
gi'eat event, a monument was reared, on which is 
inscribed, -'To the Memory of the Surrender of 
Vicksburg by Lieutenant-General J. G. Pember- 
ton to Major-General U. S. Grant, U. S. A., on 
the 3d of July, 18G3." 

As soon as Grant reached Cairo, he advised 
Halleck of his arrival, who in reply telegraphed 
him to proceed at once to Louisville with his staff, 



240 LIFE OF GRANT. 

where he would meet an officer fi^om the War 
Department, " with orders and instructions." The 
same day he started by railroad, and at Indian- 
apolis met the Secretary of "War himself, with an 
order which consolidated the three departments 
of Ohio, Cumberland, and his own into one, to 
be called the Military Division of the Mississippi, 
and placed him at the head of it, with full power 
to plan his campaigns without interference from 
any one. The Government was at last waking 
up to the fact that had been demonstrated so often 
that nothing but madness ignored it, that a cabi- 
net or any representation of the civil government 
could not conduct campaigns in the field. Mis- 
take after mistake had been made, disaster after 
disaster reached, the blame of which fell on the 
commanders, but which impartial history will put 
on men in civil authority in Washington, who 
undertook to manage that about which they did 
not understand the first principles. 



CHAPTER XV. 

CHATTANOOGA. 

Grant's Despatcli to Thomas — Puts him in the place of Kosecrans 
— Starts for Chattanooga — Has to he carried over rough 
places — Gloomy Entrance into Chattanooga — Positions of the 
two Armies — Opening up the Channel for Supplies — Hazen'g 
Expedition — Seizure of Lookout Valley hy Hooker — Burnside 
threatened at Knoxville — Sherman hurried forward — Grant 
resolves to attack the Enemy — ^Postponement — His Anxiety for 
Burnside — Despatches to him — His great Anxiety. 

The Government in placing Grant in supreme 
command of all the forces west of the Alleghanies, 
gave him the choice of keeping Rosecrans in 
command of the Army of the Cumberland, or 
of putting Thomas in his place. He unhesitat- 
ingly chose the latter. Orders were at once sent 
on to Chattanooga, announcing his assumption of 
the command of the new military division, and 
placing Thomas over the Army of the Cumber- 
land. 

Alarmed at the rumors that Rosecrans was 
about to evacuate Chattanooga, he sent with the 
same orders the following one to Thomas : " Hold 
Chattanooga at all hazards; I will be there as 
soon as possible." The quick response from this 
incomparable soldier, was, " / ivill hold the town 
11 



242 LIFE OF GRANT. 

till ive starve.'''' That was enough. Grant knew 
that now no power on earth could remove "the 
rock of Chickamauga," till he should arrive there. 
The man who, with his division alone, single- 
handed, could hour after hour hold at bay the 
whole rebel host, and save the Army of the Cum- 
berland from annihilation, could be trusted to 
keep what human power could retain. 

The next day after sending those orders. Grant 
took the railroad for Chattanooga. Reaching 
Nashville, he telegraphed orders to Burnside, at 
Knoxville, to fortify important points at once ; to 
Admiral Porter at Cairo, to get a gunboat to 
Sherman on the Tennessee, who was pushing his 
way across the country ; and to Chattanooga to 
Thomas respecting work to be done without de- 
lay. From Nashville, he with his staff took 
horses and struck across the country. Grant was 
still confined to his crutches, but he could ride 
on horseback, and the party moved off rapidly 
as the roads would permit. These, however, were 
in a horrible condition. Poor in the best season, 
now at the close of the fall they had been made 
almost impassable, in some parts, by the heavy 
rains and army wagons. Across swollen torrents 
that came roaring down the mountain sides — 
struggling over deep gullies and skirting over- 
hanging precipices — the party made its difficult 
way along the wreck-bestrewed road. To one in 



A GLOOMY PROSPECT. 243 

Grant's helpless condition the difficulties and ob- 
stacles that met them at almost every step, ^vere 
peculiarly annoying, for at some points it was 
impossible to ride with any degree of safety, and 
the entire party were compelled to dismount and 
lead their animals carefully over them. Grant, 
of course, could not use his crutches in these 
places, and his escort had to carry him across in 
their arms. 

On the last day before reaching Chattanooga, 
a cold rain set in, drenching him and his escort to 
the skin. Just as the dark November night 
closed over the dreary desolate landscape, made 
still more gloomy and dispiriting by the chilling 
rain that fell without intermission. Grant, wet, 
cold, tired, hungry, and bespattered with mud, 
rode into the beleaguered place. Passing through 
the gloomy streets to Thomas' headquarters, he 
was helped from the saddle, and limped wearily 
under the welcome shelter of a roof 

Never before did a general assume command 
under more depressing circumstances. 

No welcoming shouts of the soldiers, no cheer- 
ful congratulations of the officers, met him, but 
instead, gloomy silence and despondent utterances 
on every side. Starvation had dried up the cur- 
rents of life in the troops, while from every height 
the confident enemy looked do^vTi upon them, 
waiting for famine to do the work of the sword. 



244 LIFE OF GRANT. 

That was not a pleasant night to Grant ; but 
after conversmg with Thomas till a late hour, he 
sought the rest he so much needed. Roused by 
the morning gun, the prospect as he looked out 
upon the dreary landscape did not tend to remove 
the sad impressions of the night before, for rebel 
fortifications overlooking the place, met his eye 
whichever way it turned. 

After breakfast he mounted and rode out with 
Thomas and the chief engineer, W. F. Smith, to 
take a view of the situation. The first object 
was to open up communication with his supplies, 
so that the army could be fed. 

Brao-o; held the river between Chattanoo<Ta and 
Bridgeport, — the terminus of the railroad from 
Nashville, — so that E-osecrans was compelled to 
bring supplies by land, over the Cumberland 
Mountains, a distance of sixty miles. The roads 
had became almost impassable, by the fall rains, 
and the horses had given out, so that the few 
teams that arrived often came in half empty, for 
it was impossible to haul them fully loaded over 
the frightfiil mountain roads ; until at last the 
troops were put on quarter rations, and at the 
time of Grant's arrival had only provisions 
enough to carry them through one battle. The 
opening of a channel, therefore, for supplies to 
reach him, became the first necessity. This was 
easily done, if the river to Bridgeport, several 



OPENING COMMUNICATIONS. 245 

miles below, could be cleared of the enemy. Tlie 
arrival of the Eleventh and Twelfth corps from the 
Army of the Potomac, just before Grant''s ap- 
pointment to the chief command, had enabled 
Rosecrans to mature a j)lan for accomplishing 
this, which the former approved of, and imme- 
diately proceeded to carry out. 

The Tennessee River, which, as it approaches 
Chattanooga, is running southwest, when just 
below, turns abruptly to the south for a long dis- 
tance, and then turns back and flows directly to 
the north, when it once more resumes its old course. 
This great bend incloses a peninsula, called Moc- 
casin Point, from its resemblance to a moccasin, 
and was held by our troops ; but the opposite bank 
by the rebels, as far down as Kelly's Ferry. 
Brown's Ferry was between this and Chattanooga ; 
and tlie great object was to dislodge the enemy so 
that the road to both these ferries would be under 
Grant's control. The communication would then 
be open to Bridgeport, from which a railroad ran 
to Nashville. The operations at Kelly's Ferry 
were entrusted to Hooker, who had halted his 
corps at Bridgeport ; and those at Brown's to 
Chief Engineer Smith. The latter selected 
Hazen's brigade for the hazardous enterprise as- 
signed to him. 

The south shore of the river was so thoroughly 
defended, that any attempt to throw a force 



246 LIFE OF GRANT. 

across by pontoon bridges was impracticable. It 
was therefore determined to float fifty pontoon 
boats, with twenty-five men and one officer in 
each, making in all twelve hundred and fifty men, 
down the stream by night, and effect a landing on 
the bank, and hold it till a force of some four 
thousand men, concealed on the opposite shore, 
could be ferried over. The force would then be 
sufficiently strong to maintain itself till a pontoon 
bridge could be laid, over which reinforcements to 
any required amount could be sent. 

On the morning of the 26th, Hazen went down 
the north shore to a point opposite where the 
landing was to be efifected, and critically examined 
the locality. To the left of the ferry-house were 
two hills, which it was necessary he should occupy, 
on which there was a rebel picket post, and also 
one in the hollow between them. Having finished 
his examination, he arranged his plan of opera- 
tions, attending to every thing personally, as the 
enterprise was to be a hazardous one. Each boat- 
load of twenty-five men was to carry two axes, 
making in all a hundred; and, as soon as the 
crest of those hills at the ferry was reached, skir- 
mishers were to be thrown out, and the hundred 
axes at once set to work felling trees to make an 
abattis. He also selected points on the north 
bank of the river, where, at the proper time, sig- 
nal fires were to be kindled, to guide him in efi^ect- 



HAZARDOUS ENTERPRISE. 247 

ing a landing. The fifty boats, made of "rough 
boards roughly nailed together," were divided into 
four distinct commands, over which tried and dis- 
tinguished officers were placed, who, after being 
ftilly instructed in the duties they were expected 
to perform, were taken down opposite the ferry ; 
and the points of landing, and the position of the 
enemy, etc., all pointed out to them. These in 
turn, just before night, called together the leaders 
of the separate squads, and instructed them in 
the parts they were expected to take, and how 
each was to act in the confusion that must, to a 
greater or less extent, exist in the gloom and dark- 
ness of night, when an attack was to be momen- 
tarily expected. 

Every thing at last being arranged, the troops 
were sent to their tents to get an early sleep. At 
midnight they were awakened and marched to the 
landing, and stowed away in the boats. All at 
length being loaded, at three o'clock the silent 
little fleet pushed off into the stream, and catch- 
ing the current, drifted downward in the gloom. 
It was necessary that the utmost silence should 
be preserved ; for, if the enemy got wind of the 
movement in time, it would be frustrated. Ha- 
zen, therefore, with great gratification, saw that 
the force of the current alone, without the use of 
oars, would take him to the desired point of land- 
ing in time, and consequently passed the order 



248 LIFE OF GRANT. 

that oars should be dispensed with — and the boats 
without a sound floated rapidly down the river. 
After going three miles, they came under the guns 
of the rebel pickets ; but, by keeping in the deep 
shadow of the opposite shore, and maintaining a 
profound silence, they were not discovered, and 
the hostile sentinels slumbered on unconscious of 
danger, whilst this first step in the overthrow of the 
rebel army was being taken. There was no moon, 
and the waters rippling by gave no token of what 
was going on out on the dark bosom of the stream. 
The boats passed undiscovered, not only down to 
opposite the place of landing, but the advance 
ones had actually taken to their oars and crossed 
over, and were within ten feet of the shore before 
any alarm was given. Seeing several black masses 
rapidly approaching the shore, the picket on duty 
hailed, and receiving no answer, fired a volley and 
sent back the alarm. Hazen, now that secrecy 
was at an end, shouted out his orders, and the 
boats were impelled by the strong oarsmen swiftly 
to the shore. So rapid was the debarkation, and 
so perfectly did each party perform its separate 
duties, even in the pitchy darkness, that the signal 
fires were scarcely lighted on the opposite bank, 
before the entire command was drawn up in line 
of battle. The advance was made with equal ra- 
pidity and exactness, so that Hazen was in posi- 
tion, his skirmish line out, and the axes ringing 



FIRST SUCCESS. 249 

in the woods, before the reinforcement of the ene- 
my — only a little way over the hill — could arrive 
to drive him back. A stubborn fight commenced ; 
but the boats had no sooner disgorged their loads, 
than they were rowed swiftly across the river to 
take on board the rest of the brigade that stood 
waiting, and which quickly crossing, drove the 
enemy back. A thousand rebel infantry, with 
three pieces of artillery and a force of cavalry, 
were stationed here, which was sufficiently strong 
to have prevented any landing, had the enemy 
been prepared for it. By noon a pontoon bridge 
spanned the Tennessee at this point, over which 
artillery and troops were soon thundering. 

Hooker crossed his force at Bridgeport, and 
marched up the opposite shore. Passing swiftly 
through a gorge in the Raccoon Mountain, he de- 
scended into Lookout Valley, and on the morning 
of the 28th, Howard leading the advance, went 
into camp within a mile of Brown's Ferr}^ Geary, 
commanding the other portion of the troops, went 
into camp about three miles farther down the riv- 
er. Bragg, as soon as he was informed of these 
movements, penetrated their object, and saw. if 
they were not arrested, the siege of Chattanooga 
would be practically raised. He therefore hur- 
ried forward Longstreet, who suddenly, at one 
o'clock at night, fell on Geary, and the battle of 
Wauhatchie began. Howard, aroused by the 



250 LIFE OP GRANT. 

heavy firing, immediately started back to his help^ 
but was stopped on his way by a rebel force post- 
ed on a range of hills, which announced its pres- 
ence by a sheet of fire from its crest. Though 
the slope was heavily wooded, and the ground 
entirely unknown to officers and men, he boldly 
charged up them in the darkness, sweeping them 
like a storm. 

Geary, after three hours of desperate fighting, 
repelled the attack of Longstreet. The mule- 
teams, frightened at the nightly cannonade, broke 
from the teamsters, and dashing towards the ene- 
my with their harness and chain-traces rattling 
in the night, completed the discomfiture ; for 
the astonished rebels mistook them for a charge 
of cavalry, and fled precipitately. Lookout Val- 
ley was now Hookers, and the river open to 
Bridgeport, so that only nine miles of land trans- 
portation over good roads remained — the rest of 
the way the supplies being brought in boats ex- 
temporized by the soldiers. 

The road was now clear to Nashville, and Grant 
could calmly survey his position, and mature his 
plans. 

Missionary Ridge and Lookout Mountain abut 
on the Tennessee River, the former above and the 
latter below Chattanooga, and run inland south, 
converging towards each other, in the form of the 
letter V. At the apex rises the Chattanooga 



CHATTANOOGA. 251 

Creek, and flows, a noisy stream, into the Tennes- 
see. The space between is the Chattanooga Val- 
ley. Here, on the river, and on and among a 
cluster of knobs or hills, is Chattanooga town. It 
lies nearer Lookout than it does to Missionary 
Ridge, and from the top of the former, shells could 
be thrown into the place. The problem before 
Grant was simple enough in statement, but 
whether, under the obstacles that interposed, it 
could be satisfactorily solved, was another matter. 
The enemy must be driven from those threatening 
heights, that, fro\yning with cannon, looked down 
on his camp. This was clear ; and it was equally 
plain that it could be done in only one of two 
ways — by a flank movement, like that of Kose- 
crans when he drove Bragg out of Chattanooga, 
or by moving straight "on the enemy's works," 
and overcome all opposition by sheer hard fight- 
ing. The former course, under the circumstances, 
was impracticable, and Grant saw plainly that 
nothing was left but the Utter. But before this 
could be attempted, Sherman, who the month pre- 
vious had started with his force from Memphis, 
four hundred miles distant, must arrive. Halleck 
had ordered him to repair the railroad as he ad- 
vanced, in order that he might bring up his sup- 
plies. Grant now directed him to drop every 
thing, and push on as rapidly as possible. 

This was what Sherman wanted to do. The 



252 LIFE OF GKANT. 

moment he had heard of Grant's new appoint- 
ment, he wrote him a letter expressing his delight, 
and now, with increased ardor and confidence, 
urged on his weary columns. Grant knew that 
the enemy would not give up Chattanooga with- 
out a desperate struggle, for they fully appreci- 
ated the importance of its possession to them. 
They said: "Food and raiment are our needs. 
We must have them. Kentucky and Middle 
Tennessee can only supply them. Better give up 
the seacoast, better give up the Southwest, ay, 
better to give up Richmond without a struggle, 
than lose the golden field, whose grain and wool 
are our sole hope." 

Bragg, the moment he saw that he had lost his 
hold on the Nashville road, determined to compen- 
sate for it by driving Burnside out of Ejioxville, 
nearly a hundred miles away. Grant, made aware 
of this movement, became exceedingly anxious for 
the arrival of Sherman, through whom alone he 
could checkmate it, and he sent another messen- 
ger to him to take his four divisions and hurry on 
to Bridgeport. In the meantime he informed 
Burnside of the danger that threatened him, and 
gave him specific instructions how to act. But it 
becoming evident that Longstreet would be upon 
him before Sherman could arrive, he ordered 
Thomas to attack the enemy on Missionary Bidge, 
hoping by this course to bring Longstreet back. 



URGENT HASTE. 253 

He issued his order on the 7th, saying: "The 
movement should not be delayed later than till 
to-morrow morning." Knowing the deficiency of 
horses in the camp, he directed him, if necessary, 
to take mules from the wagons, and even dismount 
the ofScers and press their horses into the service 
of the artillery. He also telegraphed Burnside 
of the intended movement to save him. No 
doubt the case was urgent, and the danger immi- 
nent, but subsequent events proved that had the 
attack then been made, it would have been repelled, 
and might have been the beginning of greater dis- 
asters. Thomas, who had been on the ground 
longer, and whose anxiety was tempered with 
more caution, saw this, and declared that it was 
impossible for him to move until the arrival of 
Sherman. Destined to be the strongest prop 
to every commander he served under, he now 
saved Grant from committing a hasty act. The 
latter had entire confidence in the commander of 
the Army of the Cumberland, and recalled the 
order, leaving Burnside to oppose, as he best 
could, the force marching against him. He was 
disappointed, and thought if Thomas had moved 
as directed, it would have had the effect to re- 
call Longstreet. Perhaps so ; but other results 
of more importance might have followed. His 
orders were for Thomas to make the attack at the 
very point where Sherman shortly after made his. 



254 LIFE OF GRANT. 

That Missionary Kidge could not have been car- 
ried without Sherman's troops, is evident from 
the desperate nature of the struggle by which it 
was finally won. Longstreet's fifteen thousand 
men recalled and occupying the point where Sher- 
men afterwards made a lodgment unopposed, 
would, to say the least, have had a serious effect 
on the final result. It is doubtful if Grant would 
have given this order but for the anxiety of the 
Government for Bumside, and the pressing na- 
ture of the despatches fi'om both Halleck and 
the President, to see to it that he was not destroy- 
ed. He may have felt, under this pressure, that 
it was his duty to make an attempt, even if it 
failed. But to say, in the light of after events, 
that the designed movement would have been 
wise, and, in the end, successful, is asserting what 
facts do not sustain. 

Grant's command covered a large territory. 
Two armies besides the one under his immediate 
control, demanded his most watchful care, while 
the opening and guarding of railroads, and bring- 
ing up of supplies, were matters of instant and 
pressing necessity. The anxiety for Burnside, 
stimulated as it was by constant telegrams from 
Washington, was the crowning source of all his 
other anxieties. The critical state of this com- 
mander, at Knoxville, whose defeat would lose us 
East Tennessee, again made him wish to give wings 



ANXIETY FOR BURNSIDE. 255 

to Sherman's army. His active mind ran over the 
whole line of his long route, and suggested every 
possible expedient that might prevent delays, and 
expedite his march. To Burnside, despatch after 
despatch was sent, sometimes giving specific direc- 
tions concerning the steps to take in case certain 
movements were made by Longstreet. One strain, 
however, ran through them all. " Doi-Ct retreaV 
" Hold on at all hazards," was the burden of his 
telegrams, " and I will soon make a movement here 
that will relieve you." One day his language would 
be: " Hold on to Kjioxville," another, "If Long- 
street moves his whole force across the Little 
Tennessee^ cut his pontoons on the stream^ even 
if it sacrifices half of the cavalry of the Ohio 
army.'''' 



CHAPTER XVI. 

BATTLE OF MISSIONARY RIDGE. 

Bridges carried away — Anxiety and Kestlessness of Grant — Recon- 
noisances and advance of Thomas — Siierraan malies a lodg- 
ment on Missionary Eidge — Hooker carries Lookout Mountain- 
Battle above the clouds — A thrilling spectacle — Night before 
the Battle — Sherman's attack — Hooker's delay — Grant's anxie- 
ty — Assault of the Mountain — Heroism of the Troops — Grant 
and Thomas — The victory — The pursuit — Hooker attacks by 
moonlight — Grant's despatch to Halleck — Sherman sent to re- 
lieve Burnside — Review of the Campaign and Battle — Letter 
from the President. 

On the 15th of November, Sherman, leaving 
his army toiling forward, reached Chattanooga. 
The next day, he and Grant, and Thomas, rode 
out to examine the ground to be occupied by his 
army in the great move now close at hand. Urged 
by Grant to hurry up his columns, Sherman re- 
turned at once to Bridgeport, rowing the boat 
himself a part of the way. 

The moment a portion of his troops arrived, 
though worn out with their long march, and many 
of them barefoot, Grant determined not to wait 
for the remainder, but to attack at once, an^ 
issued his orders to that effect to Thomas, at the 
same time sketching the general plan of operations. 
But it was impossible for Sherman to get his 



HIS RESTLESSNESS. 257 

troops in position in time for tlie battle, which 
Grant had ordered to commence at daylight, Sat- 
urday morning. Pushed to the limits of human 
endurance, they were toiling over the miry roads, 
or a frail bridge of boats at Brown^s Ferry, and 
could move no faster. Sherman told Grant so, 
and the latter reluctantly, the second time, coun- 
termanded his order. His usually quiet nature 
was roused into painful excitement by these re- 
peated delays, and the imminent peril they caused 
to Burnside, until he could no longer preserve his 
habitual repose, but broke forth. " I have never 
felt such restlessness as I have at the fixed and 
immovable condition of the Army of the Cumher- 
landy It was no common anxiety that could 
wring such an expression from him. 

When he found that it was impossible for Sher- 
man to be up by the time he had appointed, he 
fixed the next Sunday morning for the attack. 
But a heavy rain-storm set in, deluging the roads ; 
w}iile the bridge at Brown's Ferry broke down, 
so that, though Sherman worked night and day, 
he could not be ready even by Sunday morning. 
Chafing under these jorotracted disappointments, 
Grant then fixed Monday morning for the attack, 
and so advised Thomas. But as if to try his pa- 
tience to the utmost, the rains so swelled the river, 
that the frail bridges over the Tennessee were 
swept entirely away, and every thing brought to 



258 LIFE OF GRANT. 

a complete stand still. Once more lie was com- 
pelled to inform Thomas, that farther delay was 
inevitable. 

On the night of the 2 2d, a deserter from Bragg s 
army came in and reported that the rebel general 
was about to evacuate his works. A day or two 
before, Grant had received a note from Bragg ad- 
visino" him to remove non-combatants from Chat- 
tanooga, as he was about to open upon it with 
his cannon. He, however, paid no attention to 
it, and now concluded it was intended to mis- 
lead him, while a safe retreat was effected. He 
therefore directed Thomas the next day to make 
a reconnoisance in force, and feel the enemy's lines, 
to see if it were so. The battalions were deploy- 
ed in the bright sunlight, in full view of the 
enemy, who thought it was a parade. They were, 
however, soon undeceived — for the imposing 
columns moved rapidly forward, and though can- 
non and musketry opened upon them, never 
paused until the advanced line of the enemy was 
carried and held. By this unexpected movement, 
Grant planted himself a mile nearer Missionary 
Kidge, and occupied Orchard Knob, a valuable 
position, with the loss of only a little over a hun- 
dred men. 

At last Sherman's army, with the exception of 
one division, was up, and Grant determined to 
strike without a moment's delay. His general 



A FOOTHOLD SECURED. 259 

plan was to have Sherman with the army of the 
Tennessee throw itself across the river opposite 
Missionary Ridge, make a lodgment there, and 
then assail Bragg's right wing, posted on that 
extremity of the momitain. Hooker, while Sher- 
man was getting into position, was to carry Look- 
out Mountain, the other extremity, and be ready 
to press forward the next day and cut off the rebel 
retreat, or operate on his left and rear, while 
Thomas, with his twenty thousand men, at a given 
signal was to charge straight up the rocky heights 
and carry them by storm. 

It was of the first importance that Bragg should 
be kept ignorant of Sherman's movement until 
he had effected a crossing, and Grant, therefore, 
manoeuvred his troops in a manner to make him 
think an attack was meditated against his left, 
and so drew his attention in that direction. In 
the meantime, Sherman's columns, concealed by 
hills near the shore, passed up the river till they 
reached Chickamauga Creek, above Chattanooga. 
In anticipation of this movement, one hundred 
and sixteen pontoons had been concealed in a 
stream near by, which, after dark, were floated 
down into the Tennessee, full of soldiers ; and by 
dawn the next day eight thousand men were on 
the other shore, and had thrown up a rifle trench 
as a tHe du pont. A bridge thirteen hundred feet 
long was immediately begun, and by one o'clock 



260 LIFE OF GRANT. 

was shaking to the tread of the hurrying columns. 
A drizzling rain was falling at the time, which, 
with the low clouds wrapping the heights, conceal- 
ed the movement. 

By three o'clock, Bragg, to his astonishment, 
found an army hanging along the sides of Mis- 
sionary Ridge, on his extreme right. A feeble at- 
tempt was made to repel the advance, but the 
artillery, dragged up the steep ascent, scattered 
the enemy, and night foimd Sherman securely 
planted. 

While Sherman was thus securing a lodgment 
on the rebel right. Hooker was carrying Lookout 
Mountain on his left. "The ascent of the moun- 
tain is steep and thickly wooded ; beetling crags 
peer out all over its sides from the masses of heavy 
foilage, and, at the summit, a lofty palisaded crest 
rises perpendicularly, as many as sixty or eighty 
feet. On the northern slope, about midway be- 
tween the summit and the Tennessee, a plateau of 
open and arable land belts the mountain. There, 
a continuous line of earthworks had been thrown 
up ; while redoubts, redans, and rifle-pits were 
scattered lower down the acclivity, to repel as- 
saults from the direction of the river. On each 
flank were epaulements, walls of stone, and abatis ; 
and, in the valley itself, at the foot of the moun- 
tain, long lines of earthworks, of still greater ex- 
tent. The entire force, for the defence of the 



BATTLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS. 261 

mountain, consisted of six brigades, or about seven 
thousand men." 

In the same drizzling rain and fog that had 
partially concealed Sherman's movement. Hooker 
began his march. As he looked up the rugged 
slopes, he saw that no common task had been as- 
signed him, but it was in just such emergencies 
that his great qualities exhibited themselves. 
That cloud-capped summit must be won, and 
the first step taken toward victory. The bugles 
sounded " forward," and the columns took up 
their line of march for the base, and heedless of 
the iron-storm that beat from above upon them, 
reached it and began to climb like mountain goats 
the steep ascent. Sometimes stopped for a mo- 
ment, but never driven back, they kept unwaver- 
ingly on till they entered the low hanging clouds, 
which suddenly wrapped them from sight. Grant 
and Thomas, and others down in Chattanooga, 
gazed anxiously toward the hidden summit, and 
listened with beating hearts to the crashing vollies 
and deep roar of artillery that came out of the 
mysterious bosom of the clouds. Lookout, for 
the time, seemed famed Olympus on which Ju- 
piter was thundering, or the gods contending in 
celestial fury. Nought could be seen, and though 
the heavy explosions of artillery remained station- 
ary, the vollies of musketry seemed to creep 
nearer and nearer to the summit. At this mo- 



262 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ment of intense excitement, the fog suddenly 
lifted, letting down the light of heaven upon the 
mountain top, and revealing as by magic to the 
gazing thousands below, a scene of sublime and 
thrilling interest. There, amid the rocky ledges, 
in front of the rebel works, stood our gallant 
troops, their banners mere specks against the sky. 
The battle was raging furiously, for this was the 
last foothold of the enemy — driven from the sum- 
mit, the mountain was Hooker's. The whole army 
in Chattanooga were witnesses of this strange 
fight among the clouds, and when at length they 
saw the enemy driven out of his works, and our 
banners wave above them, they broke forth into 
a shout that rent the heavens, and long, loud ac- 
clamations surged backward and forward through 
the valley. But the fighting did not cease till 
after dark, and the rebel signal-light could be seen 
waving from the lofty summit to Bragg on Mis- 
sionary Ridge, while jets of flame pierced the 
gloom, and the muffled voUies fell faintly on the 
ear below. 

But the height was won ; and Hooker at once 
opened communication with Chattanooga. 

Every thing had worked to Grant's satisfaction, 
and he only waited for the morning light to hurl 
his sixty thousand men on the rugged heights in 
his front. During the night it cleared off, and a 
sharp autumnal frost rendered the air of that high 



MORNING OF THE BATTLE. 263 

region still clearer, and gave a darker blue to the 
deep vault of heaven. The soldiers crowned the 
hills with camp-fires, revealing to the enemy their 
position, as well as showing to their friends in 
Chattanooga the important points that had been 
gained. At midnight a staff officer of Grant 
reached Sherman with directions to attack at day- 
break, saying that Thomas would also attack 
"early in the day." Sherman turned in for a 
short nap, but before daylight he was in the sad- 
dle, and riding the whole length of his lines, ex- 
amined well his position and that of the enemy. 
By the dim light he saw, to his surprise, that a 
valley or gorge lay betAveen him and the next hill, 
which was very steep, and that the farther point 
was held by the enemy with a breastwork of logs 
and earth in front. A still higher hill command- 
ed this with a plunging fire, which was also 
crowded with the foe. He could not see the bot- 
tom of the gorge below, and was not able to com- 
plete his preparations so as to attack by daylight, 
as he had been ordered. General Corse was to 
lead the advance, and before he had fully mar- 
shalled his forces, the sun arose in dazzling bright- 
ness over the eastern heights, and flooded the scene 
with beauty. His beams were sent back from 
tens of thousands of bayonet points, and flashing 
athwart long rows of cannon, while the increasing 
light brought out in a grand panoramic picture, 



264 LIFE OF GEANT. 

Chattanooga resting quietly below in its amphi- 
theatre of hills. Banners waved along the heights, 
and rose over Grant's encampment in the distance, 
and all was bright and beautiful. Here and there 
a bugle-call and drum-beat gave increased interest 
to the scene. But its beauty was soon to change 
— ^those summits, now baptized in golden light, 
were to be wrapped in smoke and heave to volca- 
nic fires, and strong columns stagger bleeding 
along their sides. 

Sherman at length being ready. Corse's bugles 
sounded the "forward," and the assaulting regi- 
ments moved steadily do-wn the hill, across the 
intervening valley, and up the opposing slope. 
Morgan L. Smith on the left of the ridge, and 
Colonel Loomis abreast of the Tunnel, drew a 
portion of the enemy's fire away from the assault- 
ing column, which having closed in a death-grap- 
ple with the foe, now advanced its banners, and 
now receded, but never yielding the position it 
had at first gained. Grant could see the struggle 
from his position at Chattanooga, and at one time 
observing two brigades give w^ay in disorder, 
thought Sherman was repulsed ; but it was not 
so. Corse, Loomis, and Smith, stuck to the ene- 
my with a tenacity that gave him not a moment's 
rest. Sherman's position not only threatened the 
rebel right flank, but his rear and stores at Chick- 
amauga station ; hence the persistency of his at- 



SHERMAN IMPATIENT. 265 

tack alarmed Bragg, and he steadily accumulated 
forces against him that rendered an advance on 
Sherman's part impossible. Hour after hour the 
contest raged with terrible ferocity, and the flam- 
ing cloud-wrapped heights appeared to the lookers- 
on at Chattanooga like a volcano in full, fierce 
action. Grant had told Sherman that Thomas 
would attack early in the day, but the former 
watched in vain for the movement. The gallant 
Corse had been borne wounded from the field, and 
Grant, fearing that Sherman was being too heavily 
pressed, sent over to his help Baird's division; 
but Sherman sent it back, saying he had all the 
troops that he wanted. Thus, he fought the battle 
alone all the forenoon, and still the banners droop- 
ed lazily along their staffs in front of Chattanooga. 
He began to grow impatient. In the bright clear 
air he could look down from his position on the 
"amphitheatre of Chattanooga,'' but could dis- 
cern no signs of the promised movement. Now 
and then a solitary cannon-shot alone told that 
the army there was alive; but beyond, toward 
Lookout, where Hooker was trying to advance, 
the heavy reverberations of artillery, and dull 
sound of musketry, showed that he was pushing 
the enemy. Thus matters stood at three o'clock, 
when, said Sherman, " I saw column after column 
of the enemy streaming toward me, gun after gun 
pouring its concentric shot on us from every hill 

12 



266 LIFE OF GKANT. 

and spur that gave a view of any part of the 
ground held by us." The attack of Thomas, 
which was to be " early in the day," was unac- 
jl countably delayed, and what could it all mean, 

was the anxious enquiry he put to himself One 
thing was plain — his exhausted columns could not 
long: stand this accumulation of numbers and con- 
centration of artillery. Grant, too, was anxious. 
The appearance of Hooker's column, moving north 
along the ridge on the other flank of the enemy, 
was to be the signal of assault on the centre ; but 
hour after hour passed by and no advancing ban- 
ners were seen. The latter had been detained in 
building a bridge across Chattanooga Creek. 

At length, he could wait no longer, and hearing 
that Hooker was well advanced, and seeing the 
centre weakened, to overthrow Sherman, he or- 
dered the assault to be made. Sherman, whose 
glass was scarcely for a moment turned from the 
centre, now saw with relief a "white line of 
musketry fire in front of Orchard Knob, extend- 
ino; further rio;ht and left and on." " We could 
hear," he says, " only a faint echo of sound ; but 
enough was seen to satisfy me that General Thom- 
as was moving on the centre." 

He was moving, but it was now nearly four 
o'clock in the short autumnal afternoon, and 
Grant had waited and waited with painful sus- 
pense, for Hooker's advance. What was to be 



THE GRAND ASSAULT. 267 

done must be done quickly ; and, as now, from 
his elevated knoll, he saw the hostile columns 
moving swiftly along the ridge toward Sherman, 
showing that Bragg was weakening his centre to 
strengthen his right, he knew that the decisive 
hour had come. The rebel general was repeating 
the mistake committed by the allies at Austerlitz 
— making a flank movement in presence of the 
enemy, and, like Napoleon, Grant at once took 
advantage of it, and gave the order to advance. 

The signal was six cannon shots, fired at inter- 
vals of two seconds each. With regular beat, one, 
two, three sounded, till, as the last deep reverbera- 
tion rolled away over the heights, there was a sud- 
den resurrection, as from the bowels of the earth, 
of that apparently dead line. Four divisions of the 
Army of the Cumberland composed it. A mile 
and a half of country lay before them to the rifle- 
pits at the base of Missionary E-idge. First, a 
belt of open timber, and then a smooth plain, then 
the rifle-pits at the base of the Ridge — finally, the 
rocky hill, four hundred feet high to mount, every 
inch of it swept by artillery and musketry. Pass- 
ing through the woods, they burst on a double- 
quick into the open plain. The tempest that now 
broke upon their heads was terrible. " The enemy's 
fire burst out of the rifle-pits from base to summit 
of Mission Ridge ; five rebel batteries of Parrots 
and Napoleons opened along the crest. Grape 



268 LIFE OF GRANT. 

and canister, and shot and shell, sowed the ground 
with rugged iron, and garnished it with the wound- 
ed and the dead. But steady and strong our 
columns moved on." 

Over their heads, from every commanding fort 
and hill, our batteries rained a horrible tempest 
of iron on the rebel works. Under this awful 
canopy, the glittering lines breasted on a run the 
fiery sleet that smote them in front, each eye fixed 
unwaveringly on the rifle-pits at the foot of the 
Ridge. The sun was now hanging just above the 
western horizon, pouring its flood of light upon 
their backs, and shining full in the enemy's faces. 
As the unclouded rays fell on those tAvice ten 
thousand bayonet-points, sweeping in one glitter- 
ing wave across the plain, the dazzling sheen of 
light was so terrible, that the rebels in the rifle- 
pits fled before it in afi'right, or fell prostrate in 
the trenches, and let it roll in flashing splendor 
over them, without firing a shot. • 

The orders were, that when the rifle-pits were 
carried, the line should be halted and re-formed 
for an advance up the heights. But, as the men 
bounded into them with a shout, they forgot all 
orders. Their blood was noAV up, and sending 
their loud hurrah above the deafening thunder- 
peals that shook mountain and plain, they began 
to scale the rocky slope. The fire that opened on 
them was appalling. It was no longer round shot 



A TERRIFIC SCENE. 269 

and shell, but canister, grape, and musketry. 
Missionary Kidge was a volcano, "a thousand 
torrents of fire poured over its brink, and rushed 
together to its base. But the line moves on and 
up. They cannot dash up that rugged acclivity. 
They dash out a little way, and then slacken ; 
they creep up, hand over hand, loading and firing, 
and wavering and halting, from the first line of 
works to the second; they burst into a charge 
with a cheer, and go over it. Sheets of flame 
baptize them ; plunging shot tear away comrades 
on left and right; it is no longer shoulder to 
shoulder; it is God for us all! Under tree- 
trunks, among rocks, stumbling over the dead, 
struggling with the living, facing the steady fire 
of eight thousand infantry poured do^vn upon 
their heads as if it were the old historic curse from 
heaven, they wrestle with the Eidge. Ten, fifteen, 
twenty minutes go by, like a reluctant century. 
The batteries roll like a drum. Between the 
second and last lines of rebel works is the torrid 
zone of the battle. The hill sways up like a wall 
before them, at an angle of forty-five degrees, but 
our brave mountaineers are clambering steadily 
on — up — upward still ! " 

It was thrilling, maddening to see those waver- 
ing banners fluttering alternately high up the 
steep acclivity, amid flame and smoke. Now one 
and now another would sink to the oround alonjr 



&"""""" """"'6 



270 LIFE OF GEANT. 

the steep, as the bearers were shot down, but the 
next moment they would gleam aloft again, as gal- 
lant comrades seized them, and carried them far- 
ther up the slope. The ranks melted rapidly away, 
but the survivors kept on. Grant gazed, appa- 
rently unmoved, at the sight, yet with his whole 
soul in the struggle. Even the impassable Thomas, 
as he saw the slow and difficult progress, exclaimed 
to Grant : " I fear. General, they will never reach 
the top." The latter merely replied : " Give 'em 
time. General, give 'em time." At last the crimson, 
glittering tide reached the crest, and just as the sun 
was sinking below the western horizon, flooding 
the heights mth his departing rays, it rolled over 
them, and Grant knew they were won. Then 
there went up a shout, like the far-off murmur of 
the sea, and as the muffled sound reached the ear 
of Grant, his compressed lips wreathed with a 
smile, and the burden lifted from his heart. 

"But the scene on the narrow plateau can 
never be painted. As the blue-coats surged over 
its edge, cheer on cheer rang like bells through 
the valley of the Chickamauga. Men flung them- 
selves exhausted upon the ground. They laughed 
and wept, shook hands, and embraced ; turned 
round, and did all four over again. It was as 
wild as a carnival. Granger was received with a 
shout. 'Soldiers,' he said, 'you ought to be 
court-martialled, every man of you ! I ordered 



A MOONLIGHT SCENE. 271 

you to take the rifle-pits, and you scaled the 
mountain ! ' But it was not Mars' horrid front 
exactly, with which he said it, for his cheeks were 
wet with tears as honest as the blood that redden- 
ed all the route. Wood uttered words that rang 
like ' Napoleon's ; and Sheridan, the rowels at his 
horse's flanks, was j*eady for a dash down the 
Hidge with a ' view halloo,' for a fox-hunt." 

Bragg and his stafl-officers attempted to rally 
the troops, and form a second line of battle, in 
vain, and the disordered host fled in aff'right. 
Sheridan, from the Bidge, saw the disorganized 
columns and confused vv^ao;on trains sursfino; 

O CD o 

through the valley below, and pushed fiercely on. 
A mile in the rear, the road wound alono; a hio-h 
hill on which Bragg had planted batteries, defend- 
ed by a strong force of infantry, to check the pur- 
suit. These now poured a rapid fire into Sheri- 
dan's division, but it kept steadily on, and reaching 
the base, a part began to climb the mountain in 
front, while Sheridan sent two regiments to flank 
it on both sides at once. It was now dark, and 
just as one of these regiments came over the crest 
of the hill, the moon rose behind it, and the col- 
umn, with bayonets and banners, was drawn in 
black, bold relief against the glittering orb. 

Hooker, too, was in full pursuit ; while Grant, 
the moment the Bidge was carried, put spurs to his 
horse and rode to the top, to direct the move- 



272 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ments, cheered by the excited soldiers wherever 
he moved. He kept on for a mile or two, but 
night checked further pursuit, except by Sheridan, 
that nothing seemed able to stop — and though con- 
fused by the darkness and ignorant of the roads, 
he kept on for seven miles, carrying consternation 
into the fugitive ranks. 

But the bugle sounding recall along and be- 
neath that blood-stained Ridge, arrested the army, 
and under the bright moon it went into bivouac 
with cheers, that, taken up by division after di- 
vision, made that autumnal evening jubilant with 
glad echoes. 

Six thousand prisoners and forty cannon, were 
the trophies of the victory. 

At seven o'clock that night, Grant sat down 
and wrote the following modest despatch to Hal- 
leck : — 

Chattanooga, November 25, 1863 — 7. 15, p. m. 
Major-General H. W. Halleck, General-in-Chief : 

Although the battle lasted from early dawn till dark 
this evening, 1 believe I am not premature in an- 
nouncing a complete victory over Bragg. 

Lookout Mountain top, all the rifle-pits in Chatta- 
nooga Yalley, and Missionary Ridge entire, have been 
carried, and are now held by us. I have no idea of 
finding Bragg here to-morrow. 

U. S. Geant, Major- General. 

From this despatch one would never dream 
that he had carried every strong position of the 



THE PURSUIT. 273 

enemy, who was now in full flight, miles away ; 
kiUed, wounded, or captured nearly a fifth of 
Bragg's entire force, and taken forty pieces of 
artillery. 

Next morning, the pursuit was recommenced, 
Grant riding with the advanced columns. 

Sherman, from his position, also moved forward, 
and, as he reached the depot of the enemy, found 
it a scene of desolation. " Corn-meal and corn, 
in huge burning piles, broken wagons, abandoned 
caissons and guns, burned carriages, pieces of 
pontoons, and all manner of things, burning and 
broken," attested the ravages of war. Along the 
road, strewed with the Avrecks of the fight, he 
pressed on till night, when, just as he emerged 
fi:om a miry swamp, he came upon the enemy's 
rear-guard. A sharp contest followed, but the 
night closed in so dark that he could not move 
forward. Here, in the gloom. Grant joined him. 
The next morning he continued the pursuit ; but 
finding the roads filled with all the troops "they 
could accommodate," he halted and turned to the 
east, to break up the communications between 
Bragg and Longstreet, now before Knoxville. 

Hooker also kept on all day, after the fleeing 
enemy; and Grant would have pressed the pur- 
suit as long as he could have fed his men, but for 
his anxiety to relieve Burnside. He therefore 
ordered it to cease, and at once directed Granger, 
12* 



274 LIFE OF GRANT. 

and soon after Sherman, to march for Knoxville 
and raise the siege. To the latter, this was as- 
signing a terrible task. It was hard to ask his 
troops, after a march of four hundred miles, and 
a fierce battle, and days of pursuit, now to make 
a forced march of eighty-four miles, in winter, 
over a broken country. " Seven days before," 
says he, " we had left our camp on the other side 
of the Tennessee, with two days' rations, without 
a change of clothing, stripped for the fight, with 
but a single blanket or coat per man — from my- 
self to the private. Of course, we then had no 
provisions, save what we gathered by the road, 
and were ill supplied for such a march. But we 
learned that tAvelve thousand of our fellow-soldiers 
were beleaguered in the mountains of Kjioxville, 
eighty-four miles distant ; that they needed relief, 
and must have it in three days. This was enough, 
and it had to be done," and he at once put his 
army in motion. 

Longstreet heard of his approach, and hastily 
raising the siege, retreated eastward. 

The campaign was now ended, and Grant could 
take a quiet survey of his position. With sixty 
thousand men, he had driven forty-five thousand 
from positions that the enemy supposed half of 
that number could hold forever ; relieved all East 
Tennessee ; and firmly established a base for fur- 
ther operations into the interior. 



DRAMATIC SCENERY. 275 

Although the campaign had closed with a thun- 
der-clap, on a narrow strip of mountain, it had em- 
braced a wide field in its progress. It took in the 
Army of the Ohio, nearly ninety miles distant, 
in Knoxville ; the Army of the Tennessee, hun- 
dreds of miles away, toiling through a hostile 
country ; as well as Chattanooga itself. Every 
thing centered around the single person of Grant, 
who, at the latter place, was the moving power 
of the whole. 

Having at length gathered the scattered, isolat- 
ed elements into his single hand, he hurled them 
in one mighty blow on the enemy, crushing him 
into fragments. His plan of battle was simple, 
and carried out like an order for a parade. Kiglit 
in the presence of the enemy, who could look 
down on all his movements from his high perch, 
he laid all his plans, and executed them with the 
precision of one who is master of fate. And 
never before was a battle fought in which there 
were more dramatic scenery and action combined. 
Mountain heights crowned with the enemy, look- 
ing do-wn on quiet camps below ; troops fighting 
above the clouds ; Grant^ the central figure of the 
great panorama, standing on a low hill, with 
three armies thundering and shouting above and 
around him ; the descending sun, flooding all in its 
departing splendor, are only so many shifting 
scenes in the mighty drama. 



276 LIFE OF GRANT. 

This brilliant campaign, so glorious in its re- 
sults, lifted Grant to the highest summit of mili- 
tary renown, and stamped him one of the greatest 
generals of his time. The President, oveijoyed 
at the result, sent the following telegram to him : 

Washixgton, December 8. 
Major-General Grakt : 

Understanding that jour lodgment at Chattanooga 
and Knoxville is now secure, I wish to tender jou, and 
all under jour command, my more than thanks — my 
profoundest gratitude, for the skill, courage, and perse- 
verance with which you and they, over so great diffi- 
culties, have effected that important object. God bless 
you all ! A. Lincoln. 



CHAPTER XVn. 

Grant again proposes to capture Mobile — His Views Opposed — 
His Congratulatory Order to his Troops — Congress Orders a 
Medal struck for him — He wishes to carry on a Winter Cam- 
paign, but is unable — Sends Sherman on a raid into Mississippi — 
A Public Dinner given him in Louisville — His Political views — 
Made Lieutenant-General, and ordered to Washington — Inter- 
esting Correspondence between him and Sherman — His Ee- 
ception at Washington — His Commission presented him by the 
President — Grandeur of his Position — Hurries up Banks — 
Maturing of Plans. 

Grant now again proposed to the Government 
a movement against Mobile, promising to capture 
or secure its investment by the last of January ; 
but his request was refused. 

Soon after, he issued the following congratula- 
tory order to the Army : 

Headquaeters, Militaey Division of the Mississippi, 
In the Field, Chattanooga, Tenn., 

December 10, 1863, 

Tlie General Commanding takes this opportunity of 
returning his sincere thanks and congratulations to the 
brave armies of the Cumberland, the Ohio, the Ten- 
nessee, and their comrades from the Potomac, for the 
recent splendid and decisive successes achieved over the 
enemy. In a short time, you have recovered from him 
the control of the Tennessee Kiver, from Bridgeport to 
Knoxville. Tou dislodged him from his great strong- 
hold upon Lookout Mountain, drove him from Chatta- 



278 LIFE OF GRANT. 

nooga Yalley, wrested from his determined grasp the 

f)ossession of Missionary Ridge, repelled with heavy 
OSS to him his repeated assaults upon Knoxville, forcing 
him to raise the siege there, driving him at all points, 
utterly routed and discomfited, beyond the limits of 
the State. By your noble heroism and determined 
courage, you have most eflfectually defeated the plans of 
the enemy for regaining possession of the States of Ken- 
tucky and Tennessee. You have secured positions from 
which no rebellious power can drive or dislodge you. 
For all this, the General Commanding thanks you collec- 
tively and individually. The loyal people of the United 
States thank and bless you. Their hopes and prayers 
for your success against this imholy rebellion are with 
you daily. Their faith in you will not be in vain. 
Their hopes will not be blasted. Their prayers to Al- 
mighty God will be answered. You will yet go to other 
fields of strife ; and with the invincible bravery and 
unflinching loyalty to justice and right which have 
characterized you in the past, you will prove that no 
enemy can withstand you, and that no defences, liow- 
ever formidable, can check your onward march. 

By order, Major-General U. S. Grant. 

About Christmas he visited Knoxville, to look 
after matters there in person. In the mean time, 
he had planned the great raid into Mississippi, 
known as the Meridian raid. About the middle 
of January, he returned to Nashville, where he 
had established his headquarters. 

Congress, in the mean time, passed a vote of 
thanks, and ordered a medal to be struck in com- 
memoration of the great services he had rendered 
the country. 

Notwithstanding Grant desired greatly to car- 



MERIDIAN RAID. 279 

ry on a winter campaign, circumstances rendered 
it impossible. Thomas, at Chattanooga, could not 
push on through the mountains towards Atlanta, 
while the impossibility of supplying the army at 
Knoxville, in the field, if properly reinforced, com- 
pelled him to give up his first purpose to move 
against Longstreet, who still lingered in East 
Tennessee. Besides, the term for which a large 
part of the volunteers had enlisted expired this 
winter, and, in order to induce them to re-enlist, 
a furlough of sixty days was given them. Hence, 
no general movement could be set on foot, and 
Grant contented himself with sending Sherman 
on his raid into Mississippi, to be supjDorted by a 
large body of cavalry, starting about the same 
time from Corinth. The object he had in view 
may be seen from his orders to Sherman, as in- 
dicated in the following letter to Halleck : 

" I shall direct Sherman, therefore, to move out 
to Meridian, with his spare force, the cavalry 
going from Corinth ; and destroy the roads east 
and south of there so effectually, that the enemy 
will not attempt to rebuild them during the re- 
bellion. He will then return, unless opportunity 
of going into Mobile with the force he has, ap- 
pears perfectly plain. Owing to the large number 
of veterans furloughed, I will not be able to do 
more at Chattanooga than to threaten an ad- 
vance, and try to detain the force now in Thomas' 



280 LIFE OF GRANT. 

front. Sherman will be instructed, Avhilst left 
with these large discretionary powers, to take no 
extra hazard of losing his army, or of getting it 
crippled too much for efficient service in the 
spring." 

Sherman started on the 3d of February, and 
pushed as far as Meridian, sending consternation 
through the South, that was filled with all kinds 
of conjecture as to the object and end of his march. 
The cavalry force destined to accompany him, how- 
ever, was driven back by the enemy, which embar- 
rassed his movements and shortened his march, so 
that, after destroying the railroad depots on each 
side of Meridian for a long distance, he returned. 

In the latter part of January, hearing that his 
eldest son was lying dangerously ill at St. Louis, 
Grant obtained permission to visit him. His ar- 
rival caused great excitement, and a public dinner 
was tendered him, in a long, flattering letter. 
Finding that his son had passed the crisis of his 
disease, and was pronounced out of danger, he ac- 
cepted the invitation. As the toast to him, the 
honored guest, was given, the band struck up 
" Hail to the Chief," and at the close of the strain, 
the building rocked to the loud hurrahs of the 
guests. To all this demonstration, Grant simply 
returned his thanks. Afterwards, when the crowd 
blocked the streets and asked for him in deafen- 
ing clamor, he reluctantly appeared on the 



POLITICAL VIEWS. 281 

balcony of the hotel. His appearance was greet- 
ed with the wildest uproar, and deafening calls for 
a speech. But he only said, "Gentlemen, I thank 
you for this honor. I cannot make a speech. It 
is something I have never done, and never intend 
to do, and I beg you will excuse me." But the 
surging multitude was determined not to be put 
off so. It did not believe that a man who could 
so coolly face that mighty tlirong, blandly smoking 
his cigar the while, could not make a speech if 
he was inclined to, and the shout, "A speech, a 
speech, a speech ! " rose like thunder from the 
streets below. A gentleman beside him said, 
General, tell them you can fight for them, but 
cannot talk to them. " Some one else must say 
that for me," was the quiet reply. But the 
clamor swelling, he was forced to open his mouth, 
and said in sharp, decided tones, "Gentlemen, 
making speeches is not my business, I never did 
it in my life — never will ; I thank you, however, 
for your attendance here," and retired, much to the 
disappointment of the crowd, for, to an American, 
a crowd ^^ithout a speech is a failure. To one who, 
at this time, asked him of his pohtical views, he 
said : " These are not the times for parties. In- 
deed, in this crisis there can be but two parties — 
those for the country, those for its foes. I belong 
to the party of the Union. Those who are the 
most earnest in carrying on the war and putting 



282 LIFE OF GRANT. 

doAvn the Rebellion, have my support. As a 
soldier, I obey the laws and execute the orders 
of aU my superiors. I expect every man under 
me to do the same." 

A bill which had been introduced into Con- 
gress by Mr. Washburne, to revive the grade of 
Lieutenant-General, Avith a view of conferring it 
on Grant, passed in the latter part of Februar}^ 
The nomination of the officer to hold this high 
position, never before occupied but by two men, 
Washington and Scott, belonging to the Presi- 
dent, he, in accordance with his own inclinations, 
as well as the clearly expressed wish of the people, 
sent to the Senate the name of Grant. He 
was promptly confirmed. The President at once 
sent for him to come on to Washington, and he 
started on the 4th of March, for the capital. The 
very day he received the intelligence of the high 
command to which he had been nominated, he 
wrote the following letter to Sherman, which, 
with the answer, exhibits both these great com- 
manders in a most attractive light. He says : 

Dear Shermajst, — The bill reviving the grade of Lieu- 
tenant-general in the Army has become a law, and mj 
name has been sent to the Senate for the place. I now 
receive orders to report to "Washington immediately, 
in person, which indicates a confirmation, or a likeli- 
hood of confirmation. I start in the morning to comply 
with the order. 

WhUst I have been eminently successful in this war, 
in at least gaining the confidence of the public, no one 



A NOBLE LETTER. 283 

feels more than I, bow raucli of this success is due to 
tlie energy, skill, and the harmonious putting forth of 
that energy and skill, of those whom it has-been my 
good fortune to have occupying subordinate positions 
under me. 

There are many officers to whom these remarks are 
applicable to a greater or less degree, proportionate to 
their ability as soldiers ; but what I want, is to express 
my thanks to you and McPherson, as the men to whom, 
above all others, I feel indebted for whatever I have had 
of success. 

How far your advice and assistance have been of help 
to me you know. How far your execution of whatever 
has been given you to do, entitles you to the reward I 
am receiving, you cannot know as well as I. I feel all 
the gratitude this letter would express, giving it the 
most flattering construction. 

The word you^ I use in the plural, intending it for 
McPherson also. I should write to him, and "svill some 
day, but, starting in the morning, I do not know that I 
will find time just now. 

Your friend, 

U. S. Grant, Major- General, 

The simple, manly sincerity of this letter — the. 
utter absence of all vanity and egotism — the abne- 
gation of all claims to distinction from his own 
merits, the generous acknowledgment of the claims 
and services of others, and the warm, noble friend- 
ship it expresses, reveal, as no eulogy could do, 
the truthfulness, modesty and real grandeur of his 
character. Sherman replied as follows : 

Dear General : I have your more than kind and 
characteristic letter of the -ith instant. I will send a 
copy to General McPherson at once. Tou do yourself 
injustice, and us too much honor in assigning to us too 



284 LIFE OF GRANT. 

large a share of the merits which have led to your high 
advancement. I know you approve the friendship I 
have ever professed to you, and will permit me to con- 
tinue, as heretofore, to manifest it on all proper occasions. 

You are now Washington's legitimate successor, and 
occupy a position of almost dangerous elevation ; but, 
if you can continue, as heretofore, to he yourself, sim- 
ple, honest, and unpretending, you will enjoy througli 
life the respect and love of friends, and the homage of 
millions of human beings, that will award you a large 
share in securing to tliem and their descendants a 
government of law and stability. 

I repeat, you do General McPherson and myself 
too much honor. At Belmont, you manifested your 
traits — neither of us being near. At Donelson, also, 
you illustrated your whole character. I was not near, 
and General McPlierson in too subordinate a capacity 
to influence you. 

Until you had won Donelson, I confess I was al- 
most cowed by the terrible array of anarchical elements 
that presented themselves at every point; but that ad- 
mitted a ray of light I have followed since. I believe 
you are as brave, patriotic, and just, as the great pro- 
totype" "Washington — as unselfish, kind-hearted, and 
honest as a man should be — but the chief characteristic 
'is the simple faith in success you have always manifest- 
ed, which I can liken to nothing else than the faith a 
Christian has in the Saviour. 

This faith gave you victory at Shiloh and Yicks- 
burg. Also, when you have completed your best prep- 
arations, you go into battle without hesitation, as at 
Chattanooga — no doubts — no reserves ; and I tell you, 
it was this that made us act with confidence. I knew, 
wherever I was, that you thought of me, and if I got 
in a tight place you would help me out, if alive. 

My only point of doubt was, in jour knowledge of 
grand strategy, and of books of science and history ; 
but, I confess, your common-sense seems to have sup- 
plied all these. 



ANNOYING ATTENTION. 285 

Now, as to the future. Don't stay in Washington. 
Come West: take to yourself the whole Mississippi 
Yailey. Let ns make it dead sure — and I tell you, 
the Atlantic slopes and Pacific shores will follow its 
destiny, as sure as the limbs of a tree live or die with 
the main trunk. We have done much, but still much 
remains. Time, and time's influences, are with us. We 
could ahnost aflbrd to sit still, and let these influences 
work. 

Here lies the seat of the coming empire; and from 
the West, when our task .is done, we will make short 
work of Charleston and Eichmond, and the impover- 
ished coast of the Atlantic. 

Your sincere friend, 

W. T. Sherman. 

There is a Spartan simplicity, combined with 
the chivalry of knightly days, in this correspon- 
dence. Amid the stern realities of war, the ac- 
clamations of the people, and the applause of the 
gi-eat, what a pleasant side-picture this private 
interchange of feelings between these two great 
commanders makes. Neither the hardenins; sio-hts 
of the battle-field, nor rank, nor emoluments, can 
change the inborn nobleness of these two hearts ; 
no pride on the one hand, no envy on the other. 
The love of these two heroes is grander than their 
heroism. 

Grant's arrival at Washinf^ton was the sio-nal 
for the wildest demonstrations of enthusiasm, and 
at the President's levee, he was lifted on a sofa so 
that all might see him. These exhibitions an- 
noyed him, and he said, "I hope to get away 



286 LIFE OF GRANT. 

from Washington, for I am tired of this show 
business." 

The next day, March 9 th, he was summoned to 
a meeting of the Cabinet. Taking his little son 
with him, who had ridden boldly by his side all 
through the Vicksburg campaign, he entered the 
room, and was introduced by the President to the 
various members, who then said : 

" General Grant : The nation's approbation 
of what you have already done, and its reliance 
on you for what remains to do in the existing 
great struggle, is now presented with this" com- 
mission, constituting you Lieutenant- General of 
the Army of the United States. 

" With this high honor devolves on you a cor- 
responding responsibility. As the country herein 
trusts you, so, under God, it will sustain you. 

" I scarcely need add, that, with what I here 
speak for the country, goes my own hearty per- 
sonal concurrence." 

Grant read from a paper the folloAving reply : 

" Mr. President : I accept this commission 
with gratitude for the high honor conferred. With 
the aid of the noble armies who have fought on 
so many battle-fields for our common country, it 
will be my earnest endeavor not to disappoint 
your expectations. I feel the full weight of the 
responsibility now devolving on me. I know 
that, if it is properly met, it will be due to these 



LIEUTENANT-GENERAL. 287 

armies ; and, above all, to the favor of that Prov- 
idence which leads both nations and men." 

Never seeking advancement, he made no effort 
to have his command increased ; yet, with a quiet 
confidence that results from consciousness of 
strength, he takes the increased responsibility 
which is forced upon him, without the least hesi- 
tation. He neither presents claims, nor offers 
excuses ; neither seeks power, nor shrinks from 
accepting it. 

A greater contrast can hardly be imagined, 
than the condition he now presented to that of a 
fcAv years ago. Then an unknown ex- captain, he 
hesitatmgly sought an interview with McClellan, 
hoping that he might be taken on his staff ; to- 
day, supreme commander of nearly a million of 
men. From complete obscurity, he, in a few short 
years, had vaulted to one of the most exalted re- 
sponsible positions ever occupied by man. Under 
no other but a republican government could such 
a marvellous transition have occurred. Still, he 
had not sprung at once by a mere stroke of for- 
tune into that position. Although so short a 
period had elapsed since he began his career, he 
had fought his way up to it. Commanding the 
limited department of Tennessee, his victories had 
caused an enlargement of the territory under his 
control. The wonderful campaign of Vicksburg 
gave him the whole Mississippi Valley as his thea- 



288 LIFE OF GRANT. 

tre of action, and placed three armies under his 
control. The victory of Chattanooga lifted him 
still higher, and now half a dozen mighty ar- 
mies were subject to his sway. As he, from this 
exalted position, cast his eyes around him, what 
a spectacle met his gaze. Never before had one 
commander surveyed so vast a field of operations, 
and looked over such a mighty array, subject to 
his single control. From the Potomac to the Rio 
Grande, for five thousand miles, arose the smoke 
of camp-fires, and stood embattled hosts awaiting 
his bidding. To aid him in the gigantic task be- 
fore him, six hundred vessels of war lined the 
rivers and darkened the coast for twenty-five hun- 
dred miles, while four thousand cannon lay ready 
to open at his command. 

The height of power to which he had so sud- 
denly attained, would have made a less strong head 
dizzy. It, however, produced no change in him. 
Volunteering no promises, indulging in no vain 
glory, he quietly surveys the vast field before him 
— speaking confidently, but only in subordination 
to the Being who lifts up and pulls down as He 
pleases. 

The work to be done was plain enough. These 
various and widely-scattered armies must be wield- 
ed like a single engine, and brought to bear with 
their united force on the central, vital portion of 
the Confederacy, and crush it to atoms. 



PREPARATIONS. ' 289 

The people breathed freer as they saw their 
favorite commander clothed with this more than 
regal power. The blunders of the Cabinet, the 
petty, partisan interference of Congress, which, 
more than the incapacity of the generals, had 
caused every thing to go amiss, and heaped defeat 
on the top of defeat, were now done with. A 
military man, with the power to grasp, and the 
energy to carry out a great plan, and embrace the 
field of operations, was at last at the head of 
the national forces, and it was plain that the day 
of " quid nuncs" at Washington was over. The 
mighty power of the North, which had been hurled 
hither and thither, with such blind energy, was to 
be held calmly in hand, and made to move like 
the steady, resistless tide of the ocean, on the 
audacious Confederacy, which had for so many 
years lifted itself on the fragments of the Union. 

Under him was a group of lieutenants worthy 
of their great leader. Sherman, Thomas, Hooker, 
Howard, Hancock, Sedgwick, Slocum, and others, 
had no peers in ability and military science. 

As it was fit, Sherman was placed over the 
]\[ississippi division, which Grant's elevation had 
vacated. 

Wliile the latter was maturing his plans, he 
quietly began to gather the materials necessary to 
carry them out. Railways groaned under the 
weight of soldiers returnin 4' to their regiments, 

13 



290 LIFE OF GRANT. 

the rivers were black with transports bearing 
ordnance and supplies, and the entire North 
trembled under the mighty preparations going 
forward. 

One of Grant's first acts after his appointment 
as Lieutenant-General, was to hurry to some con- 
clusion the ill-starred expedition of Banks, already 
started for the Red River. This was none of his 
work, but the result of the combined brilliant 
strategy of Halleck and Stanton. Hence, he, 
only a few days after he had come into power, 
sent a despatch to Banks to advance at once to 
the point he was aiming to reach — Shreveport — 
but " if he found that the taking of it would occu23y 
from ten to fifteen days — more time than General 
Sherman had given to his troops to be absent from 
their command, he would send them back at the 
time specified by General Sherman, even if it led 
to tlie abandonment of the main object of the 
Bed Biver expedition, for this force was necessary 
to movements east of the Mississippi ; that, should 
his expedition prove successful, he would hold 
Shreveport and the Bed Biver, with such force 
as he might deem necessary, and return the bal- 
ance of his troops to the neighborhood of New 
Orleans, commencing no move for the further 
acquisition of territory, unless it was to make 
that then held by him more easily held ; that it 
might be a part of the Spring campaign to move 



INSTRUCTIONS TO BANKS. 291 

against Mobile; that it certainly would be, if 
troops enough could be obtained to make it with- 
out embarrassing other movements — that New 
Orleans, would be the point of departure for such 
an expedition." Finally, he directed him to move 
as quickly as possible. He wanted the blunder 
consummated speedily, that it might not entangle 
and embarrass him in the great movements he con- 
templated. Halleck's system of operations, which 
was to kill the monster by cutting off his tail and 
claws, and so work up to the vital part, was over 
forever ; and the coming contest was to be a death- 
grapple — a last interlocking between the colossal 
power of the North and the desperate South, from 
which only one should arise. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

The way to a stable Peace — Grant on the Erroneous Manner in 
which the "War had been carried on — The right Plan of Action — 
View of the Condition — Forces in the Field — Sketch of Grant's 
Plan of Campaign — Instructions to Sherman — Instructions to 
Butler — To Meade — Army of the Potomac — Its Eoute decided 
upon — Movement delayed by muddy Koads — Strange Confi- 
dence of the South — Not shared by Lee, who orders a day 
of Humiliation and Prayer — His Preparations — Numerical 
Strength of the two Armies. 

As stated in a former chapter, Grant had no 
faith in the various theories propounded for 
brinD-ino; the rebellion to a close. Troubled with 
no visionary schemes, he with his strong common- 
sense, took a practical view of the war, and said 
that he "was firm in the conviction that no peace 
could be had that would be stable and conducive 
to the happiness of the people both North and 
South until the military power of the rebellion 
was entirely broken," i. e., the only road to peace 
lay over prostrate armies. 

This fact being established in his mind, the 
next step was to decide in what way the war 
should be carried on. First, he said that active 
and continuous operations of all the troops 
that could be brought into the field, regard- 



PEACTICAL VIEWS. 293 

less of season and weather^ were indispensable ; 
for though our numerical strength was far supe- 
rior to that of the enemy, yet we had such a vast 
territory to garrison as we advanced, and such 
long lines of communication — the greater our 
success the longer — to protect, that it cut down 
sadly the actual number of troops that could be 
brought into the field. But this was not all, he 
said ; "the armies in the East and West acted in- 
dependently and without concert, like a balky team, 
no two ever pulling together, enabling the enemy 
to use to great advantage his interior lines of 
communication for transporting troops from east 
to west, reinforcing the army most vigorously 
pressed ; and to furlough large numbers during 
seasons of inactivity on our part, to go to their 
homes and do the work of providing for the su]3- 
port of their armies." This shifting men from east 
to Avest, and vice versa^ as pressed in turn by our 
armies, and then, during our intervals of rest, while 
raising new levies, sending home the soldiers to 
cultivate the neglected fields, although requiring 
great activity, effected the same purpose as in- 
crease of numbers, so that Grant said " it was a 
question whether our numerical strength and re- 
sources were not more than balanced by these 
disadvantages and the enemy's superior posi- 
tion." 

Such being his views as he surveyed the vast 



294 LIFE OF GRANT. 

field of operations, it was a matter of course that lie 
should at the outset endeavor " to bring the great- 
est number of troops practicable against the armed 
force of the enemy, and prevent him from using the 
same force at difi*erent seasons against first one 
and then another of our armies, and the possibil- 
ity of repose for refitting and producing necessary 
supplies for carrying on resistance." In other 
words, his plan was to confront all the armies of 
the enemy with superior ones at the same time, 
compelling each to stand and fight alone. More- 
over, never to leave his presence winter or sum- 
mer, so that his conscriptions that exhausted the 
country should keep it exhausted. In the second 
place, with our greater power, " to hammer contin- 
uously against the armed force of the enemy and 
his resources, until by mere attrition of the lesser 
with the larger body, the former should be worn 
out." 

It is plain to see that mth such a mind govern- 
ing the campaign there would be fighting — fierce, 
incessant, deadly, till one or the other army was 
destroyed. 

With these clear, simple, and comprehensive 
views and plans, there remained only one more 
thino- to settle — the time and manner of bringing 
the armies into the field. 

Although almost all of Arkansas, Louisana, 
and Texas was in the possession of the enemy, 



HIS PLAN. 295 

with probably eighty thousand rebel troops scat- 
tered through them, yet the Mississippi and Ar- 
kansas rivers were so strongly garrisoned that but 
little trouble was to be feared from them, unless 
expeditions were sent into the interior. East of 
the Mississippi we held down to the State of 
Georgia, and enough of that near Chattanooga to 
protect East Tennessee. Detached forces also were 
scattered along the Atlantic coast. We had, be- 
sides, three large armies in the field — that of Banks 
up the Red Kiver ; of Sherman at Chattanooga ; 
and Meade in Virginia. The proper plan, there- 
fore, in accordance with Grant's general views, 
would have been to move these three armies on 
three vital points simultaneously, and which were 
clearly indicated by the position of affairs to be 
Richmond, Atlanta, and Mobile. Charleston had 
been abandoned, as a probable base of operations, 
but Mobile, with its river piercing inland north, 
mi2;ht be taken, and furnish a better one. Es- 
pecially if Atlanta was reached — the converging 
point of the railroads traversing the Southern tier 
of States — the occupation of these two places would 
ensure the overthrow of this entire portion of the 
Southern confederacy. But it soon became evident 
that the army of Banks could not be used against 
Mobile for some time yet, and it was therefore 
left out of the main plan, and Atlanta and Rich- 
mond became the two great objective points of 



296 LIFE OF GRANT. 

the campaign, and the two armies of Lee and 
Johnston — one on the Rapidan, and the other at 
Dalton, were to be assailed with all the strength 
and determination in his power. It is true there 
were guerilla bands to be guarded against, and a 
large cavalry force in Mississippi, and troops in 
the Shenandoah Valley to be looked after. But 
these were of minor consequence, and Grant re- 
solved that the main rebel armies should be 
pressed so vigorously that their leaders would find 
it necessary to call in these detached roving bodies 
instead of augmenting their force. 

His confidence in Sherman made it unnecessary 
to give him any but general directions. He was 
to push on to Atlanta, break up Johnston's army, 
and advance as far into the interior as he could. 
They had talked over the camj^aign together, and 
its main features were perfectly understood by the 
latter. One thing was of vital importance, that 
neither rebel army should be allowed to join the 
other, and thus give to one a sudden preponder- 
ance which might prove fatal to the Union army on 
which this concentrated force might fall. Grant, 
therefore, in his last written instructions to Sher- 
man impressed this upon him, telling him that if 
Johnston showed any signs of joining Lee, to fol- 
low him up at all hazards, and hang like a sleuth- 
hound on his track, while he promised that 
nothing short of impossibility should prevent him 



HIS FINAL DIRECTIONS. 297 

from holding Lee so firmly that he could not suc- 
cor Johnston. To Meade, the immediate com- 
mander of the army of the Potomac, his directions 
were, " wherever Lee goes, go after him." 

In operating against Lee and Richmond, Grant 
found it impossible to concentrate all the forces 
he designed to use. He could not join Butler 
at Fortress Monroe, because he would thus un- 
cover Washington ; neither could Ke allow Butler 
to join him, for that would uncover the depart- 
ment of the latter ; and he therefore determined on 
a double movement toward a common centre. 
Butler, with his force swelled to some thirty thou- 
sand men, was to move against Kichmond from 
the south, while the army of the Potomac fell upon 
Lee along the Papidan. Grant's directions to 
him were, the moment he received notice to start, 
to take City Point at once, and intrench himself 
there. Pichmond, he was told to remember, was 
his objective point, and that he must hold close to 
the south bank of James Piver as he advanced. 
When the rebel army should be driven into the 
intrenchments of the capital, then their two armies 
could unite and become a unit. If Butler could 
swing around Pichmond to the south far enough 
to have his left wing touch the James Piver to the 
west. Grant said he would form a junction there. 
This would completely cut Lee off from his sup- 
plies, and coop him up in his capital. If he could 

13* 



298 LIFE OF GEANT. 

capture Richmond, from which he knew Lee had 
been compelled to draw a great part of the garri- 
son, to do so — at all events plant himself as far up 
the south bank, of the James as he could. The 
minor details he left to himself It will be seen 
by these instructions that Grant laid great stress 
on the success of Butler s movements ; and whether 
from want of confidence in the latter's ability or 
from anxiety to impress on him his duty, he says, 
" I visited him at Fort Monroe, and in conversa- 
tion, pointed out the apparent importance of getting 
possession of Petersburg, and destroying railroad 
communications as far south as possible. Believ- 
ing, however, in the practicability of caj)turing 
Hichmond, unless it was reinforced, I made that 
the objective point of his operations. If the Army 
of the Potomac was to move simultaneously with 
him, Lee could not detach from his army with 
safety, and the enemy did not have troops else- 
where to bring to the defence of the city in time 
to meet a rapid movement from the north of 
James River." 

With regard to the movements of the Army of 
the Potomac, he said, two plans presented them- 
selves: — one to cross the Rapidan below Lee, 
moving by his right flank ; the other moving by 
his left. Each presented advantages over the 
other with corresponding objections. By crossing 
above, Lee would be cut off from all chance of 



THE ARMY WEATHER-BOUND. 299 

ignoring Kiclimond or going north on a raid. But, 
he said, "if we took this route, all we did would 
have to be done while the rations we started with 
held out; besides, it separated us from Butler, so 
that he could not be directed how to cooperate. If 
we took the other route, Brandy Station could be 
used as a base of supplies until another was secured 
on the York or James rivers." Of these, however, it 
was decided to take the lower route. This being 
the case, it was necessary to guard the Shenan- 
doah Valley, which by this movement would be 
left uncovered, and the borders of Maryland and 
Pennsylvania exposed to invasion. To prevent 
this, General Sigel was placed here with a strong 
force under his command. This was the outline 
of the great overland campaign, on the success or 
failure of which was to depend the establishment 
or overthrow of the Southern Confederacy. 

Grant had determined to move with the open- 
ing of spring, but it passed away, and the army 
remained quiet. The public wondered, and the 
spell which had so often held motionless the Army 
of the Potomac seemed unbroken. The old ex- 
cuse, that it was stuck in the mud, did not satisfy 
the people. Such was, nevertheless, the fact. The 
impassable roads of Virginia, in the rainy season, 
are no myth. This excuse had been often ridi- 
culed, yet it was still a valid one, and, though Grant 
knew the public was impatient, he knew also that 



300 LIFE OF GRANT. 

he miglit as well attempt to move that mighty 
army, with all its artillery trains, and material of 
war, through a mortar-bed, as along those clay 
roads, until they were dried up. The people won- 
dered, but there was at last nothing left them but 
patience. As, however, the weather brightened, 
and the ground became hardened. Grant gave the 
signal, which was waited for from the Tennessee 
to the James rivers, and three armies arose as 
one man and moved forward. 

More than a quarter of a million of men com- 
posed this force, to oppose which the rebel gov- 
ernment could not bring into the field half that 
number. Yet, singular as it may seem, the same 
belief was as prevalent South, that the coming 
campaign would end in their triumph, as in the 
North, that its close would witness their over- 
throw. It was natural, from the vastness of the 
preparations on our side, that we should feel con- 
fident of success ; but no such increase of force 
furnished ground for hope in the South. In fact, 
Lee's army, their chief reliance, was not much 
more than half as large as it was when he invaded 
Pennsylvania, while Grant's was nearly double to 
that of Meade's, which opposed it. 

Lee, however, did not share in these fond an- 
ticipations. He knew how mighty was the force 
he was about to meet, which uncounted thousands 
stood ready to back, while he could look nowhere 



STRENGTH OF THE ARMIES. 301 

for reinforcements to his diminished arm}^ As 
a last resort, he looked to heaven for aid, and 
issued a general order directing that " a day of 
humiliation, fasting, and prayer" be observed 
throughout the army. Public services were held 
by the chaplains in the various regiments, and 
great solemnity and deep feeling were exhibited. 
In the meantime he strengthened his position by 
intrenching his lines, and digging rifle-pits at the 
fords of the Rapidan, and left nothing undone 
which could aid him to meet the terrible shock he 
so well knew awaited him. 

Apparently the odds were fearfully against him, 
for the Army of the Potomac, with the ninth 
corps under Burnside to support it, made a 
movable column of about 140,000 men, while 
Lee had, all told, but little over 54,000. With 
such numerical superiority. Grant was confident 
of success if he could get Lee fi:om behind his 
works, and force him into a field fight. But, if 
he was always to be the attacking party and fight 
the enemy in his intrenchments, he needed 60,000 
more men to be on an equality with his adversary. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

THE OVERLAND MARCH. 

The Marcli begun — The Rapidan crossed — Lee's Flank turned — 
He determines to attack Grant in the "Wilderness — A sagacious 
Move — First Day's Battle of the "Wilderness — Arrival of Long- 
street and Burnside — Swift Marching — Second Day's Battle — 
Third Day — Headquarters — Grant attempts to move around 
Lee's Left to Spottsylvania — The Night-March — The Enemy 
arrive first — Grand Assault of the Enemy's "Works — Gallant 
Charge of Hancock — A Lull — A third Attempt to get between 
Lee and Richmond — It Fails — Last Eflfort to reach Richmond 
from the North— Battle of Cold Harbor — Change of Base to 
the James River — Attempt to capture Petersburg. 

Lee^s army stretched for many miles along the 
Rapidan river, and held all the crossings in such 
force that, as before stated, Grant, encamped at 
Culpepper, determined to swing his army off to 
the left, and cross it on the enemy's right flank, 
and thus compel Lee to come out of his works, or 
be cut off from Richmond. On the morning of 
the 4th of May the mighty host was set in motion, 
and along every road, and across open fields, 
spreading over a vast extent of country, the succes- 
sive divisions swept forward. Sheridan, with the 
cavalry, and an enormous train, composed of four 
thousand wagons, moved in advance, and reach- 
ing one of the fords, hurried across, meeting with 



THE RAPIDAN CROSSED. 303 

but little opposition. Column following column 
in seeming endless succession, pressed after him 
and gained the opposite bank. The army crossed 
at two fords, Ely's and Germania, some five or six 
miles apart. It was divided into three corps — • 
the Second, commanded by Hancock, the Fifth, 
by Warren, and the Sixth, by Sedgwick. Han- 
cock, in front, crossed at Ely's ford, followed by 
Warren, while Sedgwick crossed at Germania, 
forming the right. By night it was all over, 
having marched twelve miles. 

Thus the first great step was successfully taken. 
Crossing a river at diff'erent points, with such an 
immense train, in the presence of a skillful enemy, 
was a hazardous movement ; and the fact that it 
had been accomplished without loss, relieved Grant 
from great anxiety ; for though he had been com- 
pelled to force a passage where an immense wil- 
derness stretched away from the shore, yet a bat- 
tle had not been forced on him while in marching 
order, or struggling across the river. Still, he had 
not outwitted his wary adversary. He had no 
idea of having a battle thrown upon him in this 
frightful wilderness, and therefore issued his 
orders for the march next morning which he 
expected would take him beyond it, towards 
Gordonsville, where he would be between the 
rebel army and Richmond. A few hours would 
have sufiiced to do this. But Lee, who did 



304 LIFE OF GRANT. 

not know whether Grant would cross above or 
below him, kept a corps of observation in both 
directions, while he held his army like a hound 
in the leash. The moment he found that Grant 
had left his front and effected a passage of the 
stream below him, he put his army in motion 
for the purpose of attacking him while entangled 
in the wilderness. This was a bold, sagacious 
movement, and came very near being successful. 
Instead of falling back when he saw his flank 
turned, he resolved to break into a sudden 
and furious offensive. As Bonaparte, when he 
found himself outnumbered, two to one, by the 
Austrians, suddenly planted his little army on 
two causeways in the marshes of Areola, where 
numbers gave but little advantage, and every thing 
depended on the comparative strength of the 
heads of columns, so Lee resolved to bring on the 
battle in this wilderness, crossed only by few 
roads, in which the heaviest shocks must necessa- 
rily occur, and shut Grant's vast army up in the 
dense woods, where massive columns had little 
weight — the cavalry be totally useless, and his 
preponderance of artillery of no avail. From 
Orange Court House, the centre of Lee's position, 
two parallel roads, a little distance apart, cross 
this dreary waste, which cut Grant's line of 
march at right angles. Down these Lee deter- 
mined to hurl his columns, and strike the army in 



LEE PLANS AN ATTACK ON GRANT. 305 

flank while struggling through the thick chappa- 
ral. He knew this desolate tract well, and how to 
avail himself of the advantages it gave him, while 
to Grant it was an unknown wilderness. 

Lee, in carrying out his plan, hurried off Hill 
and Ewell, one by the turnpike and the other by 
the plank road, and at the same time sent a dis- 
patch to Longstreet, twenty-five miles distant at 
Gordonsville, to move up and strike the heads of 
our columns with his corps, while the former 
generals fell on them in flank. He was made 
aware of Grant's movements and designs so early 
that the two corps he sent off down these roads 
encamped in the wilderness the same night that 
Grant did, and were ready to fall upon him at 
daylight in the morning. 

Johnson's division, forming the advance of 
Ewell's corps, was stationed where the road down 
which it had come, intersected that along which 
the Fifth Corps, under Warren, was advancing 
early next day with its lines extending on either 
side into the forest. 

Two pieces of artillery went thundering along 
the road in advance, and coming within range of 
Johnson, unlimbered, and poured in a rapid fire. 
The infantry pressed on, receiving, as they ad- 
vanced, a terrible volley without the least sign 
of wavering, till they got within close range, 
when with a clang a whole forest of weapons 



306 LIFE OF GRANT. 

came to a level, and a sheet of fire swept 
throuo-h the srreen forest. Before it the hostile 
line gave way for a brief space ; but reinforce- 
ments coming up, the troops rallied and charged 
with such fury that they carried every thing 
before them, and captured the two guns. Press- 
ing up their advantage, they drove our advance 
back for a mile. In the meantime Sedgwick, 
with the Sixth Corps, came sweeping through 
the forest on the left, and a sanguinary struggle 
took place in his front, and for miles the woods 
echoed with the roar of musketry. Artillery was 
almost entirely useless, except along the narrow 
roads, and the strange spectacle of mighty armies 
contending in a tangled forest, where no regular 
formations could be maintained, or strategic move- 
ment made, was witnessed. Grant hurried up his 
divisions fast as he could amid the trees and 
stunted pine bushes ; and with Meade rode on to 
the Old Wilderness tavern. Up to this time he 
did not believe that he had Lee's army in front, 
but thought it a small force sent out to deceive him 
while the main army effected its retreat. It did 
not occur to him that the Confederate commander, 
when he found his defensive line turned, would, 
instead of falling back to a secure position, boldly 
cut loose and swing his entire army down upon 
him and offer battle. But as he stood by the 
solitary building, he soon discovered, by the steadi- 



FIRST day's battle. 307 

ly increasing uproar, that tlie enemy was upon 
him, and there in that gloomy Wilderness he must 
grapple with him as he best could. He therefore 
at once recalled the order of march, and prepared 
for battle. Hancock at this crisis was ten miles 
distant, do^vn the river, and swift riders were im- 
mediately despatched to him to close up quickly as 
possible. In the meantime the battle deepened, 
and at length, when Hancock arrived, it swelled 
into its grandest proportions. He and Warren 
however were, in fact, separate armies, fighting 
separate armies, and all day long had but little 
connection with each other. Grant at the Old 
Wilderness tavern listened to the uproar, receiv- 
ing ever and anon reports from his army, which 
was so shut up in the forest that no portion of it 
could be seen. No wind was stirring, and the 
smoke settled amid the foliage, while from out 
the bosom of the dense woods arose cries and yells 
and shouts and rolling volleys, in wild and horrid 
discord. " Back in a ceaseless flow from the line 
that marks this fierce strug-o-le the wounded and 
maimed are borne on blankets and litters, telling 
by their numbers the deadly work going on in 
advance." 

All day long this mad strife went on, and when 
night closed over the forest and ended it, Grant 
found himself near the very spot from which in 
the morning he had started. His advance divis- 



308 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ions had been driven back, his loss had been 
heavy, and nothing gained. "The woods of the 
Wilderness have not the ordinary features of a 
forest. The region rests on a belt of mineral 
rocks, and for above a hundred years extensive 
minino; has been carried on. To feed the mines, 
the timber of the country for many miles around 
had been cut doTvn, and in the j^lace there had 
arisen a dense undergrowth of low-limbed and 
scraggy pines, stiif and bristling chinkapins, 
scrub oaks, and hazel. It is a region of gloom 
and the shadow of death. Manoeuvering here 
was out of the question, and only Indian tactics 
told. The troops could only receive direction by 
a point of the compass ; for not only were the lines 
of battle entirely hidden from the sight of the 
commander, but no officer could see ten files on 
each side of him. Artillery was wholly ruled out 
of use, the massive concentration of three hun- 
dred guns stood silent. . . Cavalry was still more 
■useless. But in that horrid thicket there lurked 
two hundred thousand men, and through it lurid 
fires played ; and though no array of battle could 
be seen, there came out of it the crackle and roll 
of musketry, like the noisy boiling of some hell- 
caldron, that told the dread story of death. Such 
was the battle of the Wilderness." * Still Grant 
had no thought of retreating ; on the contrary, 
* Swinton's Army of the Potomac. 



ARRIVAL OF LONGSTREET. 309 

he issued orders to have the attack renewed at 
sunrise next morning. 

In the meantime Longstreet was pressing on 
through the darkness, and his advance reached 
the battle-field just as Grant moved again to the 
attack. It was not yet fully deployed into line 
when the onset came. With such fury was it 
made, and so desperately did Grant push the at- 
tack at this point, that Longstreet was born s"svift- 
ly back, till his disordered ranks almost reached 
the spot where Lee stood. 

Longstreet knew what fearful results depended 
on his checking our victorious troops, and put 
forth superhuman efforts to stem the flood, but 
was soon borne bleeding from the field. Lee, now 
thoroughly alarmed as he saw our line sweeping 
resistlessly doAvn upon his imperilled right, rode 
himself at the head of a brigade of Texans, and 
ordered them to follow, intending to lead the 
charge in person. But instead of shouts at his 
gallant devotion, there arose one loud remon- 
strance against the act, and he had to retire, while 
the whole division, animated by his example, 
drove so furiously on our advancing columns that 
they were forced back, losing the ground they 
had so nobly won. 

To meet just such a possible exigency as this, 
Grant, the very afternoon on which he crossed 
the Eapidan, sent back to Burnside — who, with 



310 LIFE OF GRANT. 

the Ninth Corps, was still at the crossing of the 
Rappahannock River and Alexandria Railroad, 
guarding the railroad back to Bull Run — to hurry 
forward. The latter immediately put his army in 
motion, and, though in his march two rivers had 
to be crossed and more than thirty miles of bro- 
ken country traversed, he at this opportune mo- 
ment led his tired columns on to the field. He 
had wasted no time, and, as Grant said, "Con- 
sidering that a large proportion, probably two 
thirds, of his command was composed of raw 
troops, unaccustomed to marches and carrying 
the accoutrements of a soldier, this was a remark- 
able march." It was remarkable, and must have 
been even wonderful to draw such a compliment 
from Grant, who had thoroughly tested the march- 
ing powers and endurance of troops. 

Thus reinforced, both armies continued the 
work of slaughter, and all day the battle roared 
for seven miles through that forest. " There, in 
the depths of those ravines, under the shadows of 
those trees, entangled in that brushwood, is no 
pomp of war, no fluttering of banners in an un- 
hindered breeze, no solid tramp of marching bat- 
talions, no splendid strategy of the field Napoleon 
loved to fight on. There a Saturnalia, gloomy, 
hideous, desperate, rages confined. The metallic, 
hollow crack of musketry is like the clanking of 
great chains about the damned — that sullen yell of 



SECOND day's battle. 311 

the enemy, a fiendish protest of defiance. How the 
hours lag! How each mmute is freighted with a 
burden that the days would have groaned to bear 
in other times. Still the sad, shuddering proces- 
sion, emerging out of the smoke, and tumult, and 
passion, and passing on ; still the appealing eyes, 
clenched hands, and quivering limbs of human crea- 
tures, worse than helpless, whose fighting is over." 
Thus wore on this terrible day — the opposing lines 
swaying backward and forward amid the forest, 
as now one and now the other advanced or was 
forced back. Since the first great success in the 
morning, there had been no crisis in the battle — it 
was simply a long, tiresome slaughter, and when 
night came, the two armies occupied nearly the 
same ground they had in the morning. Lee's 
flank was not yet turned, and to all appearances 
Grant was checkmated here at the outset. It 
was evident that this kind of fighting could not 
last much longer, for there is a limit to human 
endurance. For two days, now, the troops had 
been constantly under arms, and most of the time 
fighting, many having hardly tasted food the 
whole time. 

Thus far Lee had not remained beliind his 
works, but acted steadily on the offensive whenever 
he could ; but now, crippled and exhausted, he 
took refuge in them. Grant, on reconnoitering 
early the next morning, ascertained this, and feel- 



312 LIFE OP GRANT. 

ing that it would be asking too much of his jaded 
troops to require them to carry these intrench- 
ments by storm, resolved, by a sudden march to 
the left, to get around Lee at Spottsylvania. But 
little fighting occurred during the day, for the 
troops on both sides were completely worn out. 
In fact, Grant found the soldiers too exhausted to 
make the contemplated march, and gave them till 
night to rest ; and for miles and miles the forest 
was black with prostrate sleeping forms. Even 
Grant, with all his endurance, was glad of a little 
repose, and throwing himself do-svii on the ground, 
was soon "wrapped in slumber. An eye-witness 
thus draws a picture of headquarters this after- 
noon: "The lieutenant-general here, at the foot 
of a tree, one leg of his trowsers slipped above his 
boots, his hands limp, his coat in confusion, his 
sword equipments sprawling on the ground ; not 
even the weight of sleep erasing that persistent 
expression of the lip which held a constant prom- 
ise of something to be done. And there, at the 
foot of another tree, is General Meade — a military 
hat, with the rim turned down about his ears, tap- 
ping a scabbard with his fingers, and gazing ab- 
stractedly into the depths of the earth through 
eye-glasses that should become historic. General 
Humphreys, chief of staff — a sjDectacled, iron-gray, 
middle-aged officer, of a pleasant smile and man- 
ner, who wears his trowsers below, after the 



HEADQUARTERS. 313 

manner of leggins, and is in all things indepen- 
dent and serene, paces yonder to and fro. That 
rather thick-set officer, with closely-trimmed whis- 
kers, and the kindest of eyes, who never betrays a 
harsh impatience to any comer, is Adjutant-Gen- 
eral Williams. General Hunt, chief of artillery, 
a hearty-faced, frank-handed man, w^hose black 
hair and whiskers have the least touch of time, 
lounges at the foot of another tree, holding lazy 
converse with one or two members of his staff. 
General Ingalls, chief quartermaster of the army, 
than whom no more imperturbable, efficient, or 
courteous presence is here, plays idly and smil- 
ingly with a riding- whip, tossing a telling word or 
two hither and thither. Staff officers and order- 
lies and horses thickly strew the grove." 

But that night, after the moon was down. Grant 
began his march, Warren leading the advance. 
" The fires burned brightly, and at a distance, up- 
on the wooded hillsides, looked like the lights of 
a city. Standing upon an eminence, at the junc- 
tion of Germania, Chancellorsville, and Orange 
Court House roads, along which the tramp of 
soldiers and the rumble of wagon trains made a 
smothered din, one could almost imagine himself 
peering down through the darkness on the streets 
of a metropolis in peace. Back in the forest, 
fi'om the hospitals, from the trees, from the road- 
side, the wounded were being gathered in ambu- 
14 



314 LIFE OF GRANT. 

lances for the long night-journey. That part of 
the army not on the move was slumbering by 
fires, waiting for the signal." Lee, who watched 
his adversary with sleepless vigilance, knew of this 
movement within an hour after it commenced, and 
at once hurried off troops by a shorter route, 
which, by rapid marching — at one time going on 
the double-quick for two miles — reached Spott- 
sylvania first. Althougji Warren pushed the 
enemy before him, and succeeded in carrying the 
first line of breastworks, yet he was finally compel- 
led to retu-e with the loss of fifteen hundred men. 
The next day Sheridan started on his raid to 
break up Lee's communications with Richmond. 
This, and the two following days. Grant spent in 
" manoeuvring and fighting, without any decisive 
results." On the 12th, he made a grand assault 
on the enemy's lines, and a most terrific conflict 
followed. Our wearied men fought as though 
fresh from their encampments. Bayonet charges 
occurred in various parts of the line, and the roar 
of artillery, and crash of musketry, and shouts of 
infuriated men, conspired to make a scene of ter- 
ror inconceivable, indescribable. The carnage was 
awful ; not less than eight or ten thousand men 
falling on our side alone. Hancock's assault on 
Lee's right centre was a brilliant one, and, 
though crowned with great success, gave no per- 
manent advantao;e. His attackino; columns were 



AN ASSAULT. 315 

formed before it was full daylight, and just in the 
gray of the dawn moved swiftly, and without 
firing a shot, straight on the ramparts, at whose 
base stretched a deep, wide ditch. The enemy, 
never dreaming of such a bold movement, saw, 
before they were aware of it, the soldiers pouring 
like an inundation over the works. Rolled back 
by the sudden and terrific onset, they retreated, 
fighting, for a mile. Made aware of the frightful 
disaster that had overtaken them, the rebel gene- 
rals hurried up supports, and reforming the lines, 
advanced with the determination to retake the im- 
portant position. Five times did Lee hurl his 
army upon it, and as often was driven back. The 
battle raged here all day with terrific fury, and 
the ground was literally heaped with the dead. 
So determined were the onsets, and so close the 
death-grapple, that the rebel colors and our o^vn 
would at times be planted on the opposite sides of 
the same works, "the men fighting across the 
parapet." 

Hancock captured, in this brilliant assault, an 
entu*e division, four thousand strong, and thirty 
guns. 

But Grant saw clearly that the strong position 
of Lee could not be carried by assault, and he 
found himself again foiled. He had left a dead 
and wounded army behind him, and had neither 
got a decisive battle out of Lee, nor compelled 



316 LIFE OF GIIANT. 

him to retreat. Instead, however, of being dis- 
heartened, his purpose was more fixed than ever, 
and he telegraphed back to Washington, " I shall 
fight it out on this line if it takes all summer," 
and asked for reinforcements. They were sent, 
as of old, with trembling expostulations not to 
leave Washington exposed ; but its safety rested 
not on its garrisons, but on Grant's strong right 
arm. While these were coming up, Grant changed 
his base of supplies to Fredericksburg. Two 
weeks were consumed in this Avay, and then he 
resolved to make another efibrt to get around 
Lee. Moving oft" in a simicircle, he aimed for the 
North Anna river, which, if he could reach first, 
would place him between Lee and Richmond. In 
order to conceal this movement, the corps on his ex- 
treme right moved back, and marched down behind 
the main army. When well under way, the one 
next to it broke oft" in the same way — so that the 
right wing became the left, and vice versa. But 
again Lee, who was keenly on the lookout, de- 
tected the movement soon enough, and by swift 
marching, and having a shorter distance to travel, 
reached that point first ; and Grant, finding his 
position still stronger than the one at Spottsylva- 
nia, made no determined efibrt to take it. Han- 
cock gained some success; and Warren had a 
short, fierce battle with the enemy, in which 
Grant said, " I never heard more rapid or mass- 



• SKIRMISHING. 317 

ive firing, either of artillery or musketry." The 
rebel attack was repulsed, but no important ad- 
vantage was secured; and Grant determined to 
make one more attempt to swing around Lee and 
compel him to fight outside of his works, and on 
the night of the 26th moved by way of Hanover- 
to^vn. But when, on the 28 th, the army reached 
the place — which was only fifteen miles from 
Hichmond — he found Lee's army drawn up in 
line of battle and intrenched, ready to receive 
him. Marching and skirmishing and partial bat- 
tles now occupied several days ; when Grant, hav- 
ing completed his arrangements, fixed the 3d of 
June for a heavy assault along the whole line. 
The Eighteenth Corps had in the meantime joined 
him from Butlers army, which Avas so "corked 
up" at Bermuda Hundred as to be of no practical 
use. The Union line, at this time, extended 
from Bethesda Church to Cold Harbor, a distance 
of eijxht miles. At a o-iven sio-nal it advanced in 

O Do 

splendid order, and Grant hoped by one mighty 
effbrt to drive Lee across the Chickahominy, 
and force him into the intrenchments of Rich- 
mond. But the rebel host lay behind strong 
works that could not be carried, although the 
troops struggled for five dreadful hours at their 
very base. Completely exposed, they were mov/ed 
down with terrible slaughter ; while the enemy, 
sheltered behind his breastworks, suffered but 



318 LIFE OF GRANT. • 

little. The next morning Grant rode along the 
front to ascertain from the various commanders 
the actual state of things in their vicinity. He 
returned, absorbed in thought, for he knew it 
would be useless to I'epeat the attack. All that 
matchless valor and skill could do had been done, 
and thirteen thousand men had fallen in the long 
and hopeless struggle ; while the enemy, sheltered 
behind his works, had lost hardly more than as 
many hundred. Never had a commander or 
subordinates made more superhuman endeavors, 
never had the world witnessed such determina- 
tion and endurance in troops, yet nothing had 
been gained except in the destruction of life. 
Grant saw that his last effort had been made for 
victory in the field, and he must settle down to a 
long; siege, or chansfe his base. 

He now proposed to Lee, that while there was 
no actual fighting, each party might, on notifica- 
tion to the other, succor its wounded and bury its 
dead. Lee replied that he preferred it should be 
done through a flag of truce, to which Grant gave 
his assent. 

Finding that Richmond could not be reached 
over the enemy in this direction, he determined, 
by a sudden movement, to fling his army over the 
James Kiver, and seize Petersburg, which Butler 
had failed to take, laying the blame of defeat on 
Gilmore. 



CROSSES THE JAMES. 319 

This, however, was a delicate operation, for the 
opposing lines were so close that it was hardly to 
be expected that he could move off, unobserved, 
such an immense army, without exposing himself 
to a sudden attack. But concentrating his lines, 
and throwing up strong works to protect his 
flanks, he, on Sunday night, the 12th of June, 
quietly and swiftly changed front, and marched 
away from the Chickahominy. Smith's corps 
moved off to the White House and embarked on 
transports, while the rest of the army struck 
across the country to the James River, fifty miles 
away. Passing below the White Oak Swamp, 
stirring recollections were brought to the army of 
the Potomac, which two years before fouo;ht their 
way on almost the same line to the point toward 
which they were now pressing. 

Grant broke up his camp and sent off all his 
immense trains on the 12th. Two days after, on 
the 14th, Hancock was crossing the James, by 
ferry, at Wilcox Landing, and the Sixth Corps, 
by ferry and a pontoon bridge, a little lower 
down. 

This march of fifty-five miles was made without 
molestation; and the manner in which it was 
planned and carried out shows the marvellous 
skill of Grant in handliu"; a laro^e army. He ex- 
pected to take Petersburg by this sudden move- 
ment, and thus advance his lines nearer to Hich- 



320 LIFE OF GRANT. 

mond on the south side. The attack wias at first 
successful, and the outer works captured, and the 
report flew over the land that it had fallen. It 
ought to have fallen days before, and would if 
Grant had been on the spot to have controlled 
Butler, Gilmore, and Smith, in person. But the 
failure of these officers had caused the enemy to 
strengthen the fortifications and reinforce the gar- 
rison. 



CHAPTER XX. 

REVIEW OF THE CAMPAIGN. 

The Overland and Peninsula Routes considered — Reasons against 
the Former — " Continuous Hammering" — Grant charged with 
having Contempt for all Manceuvres — The Charge disproved — 
Distinguished for his Skilful Manceuvres— Compai-ed to Napo- 
leon — Not to blame for the Slaughter in the Wilderness, or the 
Error at Cold Harbor — Gloomy Retrospect — Failure of Siegel 
and Butler to do their Part — Reason of the great Disparity in 
the Losses of the two Armies. 

A CORRECT idea of the motives that influenced 
Grant to the com^se he adopted — and the causes 
that led to the failure of his plan in its most im- 
portant features — and the results he actually ac- 
complished, can be obtained only by a careful 
review of the campaign from its inception to its 
close. 

It had lasted forty-three days, and he now 
found himself on the spot that McClellan occu- 
pied when the Army of the Potomac was re(;alled 
to Washington. 

The friends of the latter pointed to this fact, and 
inquired, why, if the army Avas to occupy the 
Peninsula at last, it was not transported there at 
the outset — as it could have been without the 
loss • of a man — instead of reaching it, after a 
U* 



322 LIFE OF GRANT. 

long struggle, and the sacrifice of sixty thousand 
men? 

It seems never to have occurred to these critics 
to inquire, what Lee would have been doing while 
this great transfer of the army was being effected. 
It is assumed that he would have hastened back 
to the defence of his capital. But this is merely 
conjecture : for nothing is more evident than that 
he could have defended Richmond better by 
marching again into Maryland, or on Washington ; 
for before the heads of his columns were well 
over the Potomac, Grant's army would have been 
recalled. But suppose Lee had not made this 
bold move, and taken instead his army to Bich- 
mond, where he did eventually plant it, he could 
have spared enough troops to threaten Washing- 
ton, and break up Grant's army ; for even after 
his terrible losses in the battles of the Wilderness, 
and at Spottsylvania and other places, he was 
still able to despatch an army twelve thousand 
strong into the Valley of the Shenandoah, which 
gathered its harvests, and then crossing into Marj^- 
land and Pennsylvania, burned Chambersburg, 
cut the railroad north of Baltimore, and advanced 
to the very gates of the National capital. It 
spread consternation on every side ; and although 
the Nineteenth Corps opportunely arrived from 
New Orleans, it was not considered strong enough, 
with all the forces that could be raised in the 



THE ROUTES CONSIDERED. 323 

vicinity, to cope with the rebels, and the veteran 
Sixth Corps had to be detached from the army 
of the Potomac, and sent to protect Washington 
and the neighboring loyal country. 

Now suppose that Lee had the twenty thou- 
sand men that lay in hospitals, or strewing tlie 
battle-fields on the line of his retreat, to add to 
the twelve thousand he actually sent to the valley 
of the Shenandoah, swelling the force to thirty or 
forty thousand men : who does not see that the 
siege of Richmond must have been raised, and 
the whole campaign gone over again ? It requires 
but the simplest arithmetical calculation to de- 
termine, if twelve thousand men demanded the 
presence of tAvo additional corps in front of Wash- 
ington, how many corps would thirty or forty 
thousand men have required. Those dead and 
wounded of Lee's army that cost us so heavily, 
were, in the crisis of affairs, absolutely indispen- 
sable to the defence of Richmond. Lee could not 
replace them. 

But it has been suggested that Grant should 
have divided his army, and left part to cover 
Washington, and transported the other half to 
the Peninsula. We do not see how this relieves 
the difficulty ; for in case Grant thus divided his 
forces, Lee would have divided his also, and left 
twenty-five thousand men in front of Washing- 
ton, which, if the two corps sent to defeat Early 



324 LIFE OF GRANT. 

witli twelve thousand furnishes the correct ratio 
of force required, four corps would have been 
necessary to oppose them. On this supposition, 
had there been no overland campaign, and hence 
Lee lost no troops, he would have had within five 
thousand as many men to defend Bichmond as 
he did have, while Grant would have been weaker 
by half his entire army. In the light of subse- 
quent events, it is not difficult to see what added 
embarrassments, protracted delays, if not defeat, 
would have resulted from this diminution of his 
force in front of Richmond. As it was, he had 
quite few enough troops for the task required of 
him. Hence it is clear, whatever course Lee 
might have taken, the result to Grant would have 
been the same had he planted a part, or the whole 
of his army, on the Peninsula, without first weak- 
ening his adversary. It would have been mad- 
ness to have assailed him in his strong works 
along the Rapidan. A flank movement, there- 
fore, was the only course left him ; and the Battle 
of the Wilderness, fearful as it was, became in- 
evitable, and he now had to fight his way to 
Bichmond, or retreat. No one would approve of 
the latter course — how then could he have done 
otherwise than he did ? Will any one assert that 
the army could have been handled with more 
consummate skill, or fought with more splendid 
heroism? He was not to blame for the strong 



MANCEUVRING. 325 

works that hedged his path on every side. The 
terrific battles and failures of the last three years 
had caused them to be constructed by the enemy ; 
and when Grant took command, he had got to 
fight Lee with all these disadvantages against him, 
or not fight at all. It was this state of things that 
made him say he meant to win success by "contin- 
uous hammering." The phrase has been repeated 
to prove that Grant possessed no strategy, and re- 
lied solely on brute force. To give still greater 
emphasis to the accusation, he is adduced as evi- 
dence against himself. It is said that soon after 
he took command of the Army of the Potomac, 
General Meade was one day speaking to him 
of certain manoeuvres that might be executed, 
when the former interrupted him with " / neve?' 
manoeuvre.'''^ 

Now we do not wish to question the authority 
for this statement, but simply say that it was in- 
tended either as a rebuke to mere " martinetism^'''' 
if we may coin the word — or in other words, an 
expression of impatience at the laying down of 
some abstract rules as found in the books, and 
which had no pertinency in the present condition 
of things ; or he did not believe what he said and 
stated what his acts disproved. Hence, the infer- 
ence deduced from the utterance of the expression 
is totally false. 

There arc two distinct kinds of manoeuvres — one 



326 LIFE OF GRANT. 

on the battle-field itself, the whole of which the 
commanding general from a height or tower of ob- 
servation embraces in a glance, and over which he 
moves his troops as one moves pieces on a chess- 
board. Now if Grant's remark applied to this 
kind of manoeuvres, he not only told the truth, but 
showed his good judgment — that strong common 
sense which enabled him to make on the spot, if 
he had never seen them, all the good rules appli- 
cable to that particular case, and reject those 
growing out of a warfare waged on entirely differ- 
ent conditions than the one he was conducting. 
He had this distinctive quality of greatness, that 
he could use rules without letting rules use him. 
Napoleon, in those great battles fought on the ex- 
tended, open, and often unfenced plains of Europe, 
was accustomed from some elevated position to 
sweep the entire field with his glass, and handle 
his array like a single machine. But not a 
battle of any proportions had been fought in our 
country on such an open plain, and probably never 
will be, unless it takes place on one of our west- 
ern prairies. Our armies met in woods and ra- 
vines and thickets, where the commander could see 
only a small portion of the army at any one time, 
and much had to be left to the discretion of the 
corps and division commanders. To speak of 
grand manoeuvres, such as are described in the 
military works of Europe, as possible on the fields 



MAN(EUVRING. 327 

of our conflict, is absurd ; and if Grant said he 
" never manosuvred^'' in reference to such martial 
displays, we repeat it, he showed his good sense, and 
deserves praise instead of censure for it. There 
was no such manoeuvring at Antietam, Freder- 
icksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Shiloh, 
Stone River, or Missionary Bidge. It was all 
square, stand-up, hard fighting — massive onsets 
and shocks — and Grant doubtless meant to say it 
had got to be so to the bitter end. 

The other class of manceuvres applies to those 
movements made to get into right position pre- 
vious to battle ; skillful marches by which the 
enemy is deceived and attacked in an unexpected 
quarter, or different portions of his army cut up 
in detail before they can concentrate. These man- 
oeuvres, if successful, indicate the highest order of 
military genius, and Grant plainly had no refer- 
ence to these in the remark quoted above, for 
he had won his greatest fame and success by 
them. It was a battle of manoeuvres from 
the day he passed the batteries of Vicksburg, 
for a whole month, till he invested the place. 
With three armies opposed to him, he so manoju- 
vred that they were never able to form a junction 
and overwhelm him, but, beating them in detail, 
separated them totally. In fact, so brilliant were 
these manoeuvres, and so rapidly executed, that 
but for the failure of McClernand to perform tlie 



328 LIFE OF GRANT. 

part assigned him at Champion's Hill, Vicksburg 
would have been reached and invested without a 
single serious battle. The first campaign of Na- 
poleon in Italy, and that which shut up Mack at 
Ulm and compelled his capitulation, are con- 
sidered models for the military student ; yet that 
of Grant in rear of Vicksburg is equal to either 
of them in boldness of conception and skill and 
success in execution, and must, when the nature 
of the country is taken into consideration, be re- 
garded as superior to them. 

It is, therefore, as we said, absurd to attempt to 
prove that Grant did not approve of manoeuvring. 
He thoroughly understood his situation, and in 
our opinion, and which we think the facts and 
reasons as presented above sustain, executed the 
only manoeuvre that promised success. His critics 
confess that there were but three movements open 
to him — the one he made, a similar one around 
Lee's left, and last the transportation of his army 
or a part of it to the Peninsula. That by the left 
would have required just as much fighting as the 
one he took, while subsequent events have shown 
that the transportation of the army to the Penin- 
sula would have been an error. The most terrible 
slaughter that occurred in his entire march was at 
the battle of the Wilderness, where it was a con- 
test of mere brute force, but that was not brought 
on by him, but Lee, and on purpose to iJ^^emnt 



ERROR AT COLD HARBOR. 329 

mancEuvrino;. Grant here acted on the de- 
feusive ; and when one points to the piles of 
dead which strewed that gloomy forest, and speaks 
of butchery, let him remember that the gladiato- 
rial conflict which wrought that destruction was 
the work of the rebel commander. 

Grant's desperate assault on the strong works 
at Spottsylvania was necessary, unless he aban- 
doned his plan altogether of getting between Lee 
and Richmond, and is sustained by the soundest 
military maxims. The only other fearful slaughter 
which made his enemies at home and abroad stig- 
matize him as a butcher, was at Cold Harbor — and 
if he made any mistake in this campaign it was here. 
The battle was decided in the first ten minutes, 
and the long struggle that succeeded was un- 
doubtedly a useless waste of life. Grant may 
have carried his proverbial obstinacy of character 
too far here, but it was his last hope. He must 
do this or give up the plan of reaching Kichmond 
from the north, and it was natural that his last 
effort should be pushed even beyond the limits 
of good judgment. The attack proved a total 
failure, and the frightful disparity in the loss 
of life shows that it should never have been 
made. 

It is true this campaign of fifty-three days 
summed up sadly. As Grant looked back on the 
frightful road he had travelled, he could not 



330 LIFE OF GKANT. 

behold any one success of gi'eat importance. 
On the contrary, his plans had all miscarried 
— he had not accomplished what he proposed 
to do. More than this, the two generals who 
were to cooperate with him had worse than 
failed in the task assigned them. Siegel, in the 
Valley of Shenandoah, not only effected nothing, 
but was terribly defeated and put to rout, while 
Butler on the James River had succeeded only in 
" corking himself up " at Bermuda Hundreds. 
Different results would doubtless have been reach- 
ed had more competent generals been in their 
places. But political considerations in Washing- 
ton, outside of Grant, put them in the resj^onsible 
positions they held. Especially, if an energetic, 
able commander had been in Butler s place, Grant 
would have been saved the sad retrospect, and 
the discouraging future he now contemplated. 
Had Sheridan been at the head of the army on 
the James, he would long before either have been 
in Richmond, or pressing it so terribly that Lee 
would have been compelled to retreat precipitate- 
ly to save it, with Grant thundering in his 
rear, and sure of a speedy victory. But some in- 
sane political necessity kept Butler in command 
against Grant's wishes, and he failed utterly to 
do his part in carrying out his commander s plans, 
and hence at the very outset rendered their execu- 
tion impossible. 



GLOOMY RETROSPECT. 331 

The disparity of loss in tliis campaign is men- 
tioned as a 23roof of Lee's superior generalship, 
but the inference is false. Grant was acting on 
the offensive, and had to attack the enemy where 
he found him. Lee kept behind his works except 
in the battle of the Wilderness, and the ratio of 
loss between assailants and defenders, where the 
latter are protected by strong works, has alwaj^s 
been considered as about four to one. It is true 
that the record of our loss in this campaign is a 
frightful one. In the battle of the Wilderness 
and up to Spottsylvania, the aggregate in dead, 
wounded, and missing, was, . . . 29,410 

Spottsylvania 10,381 

North Anna 1,607 

Cold Harbor 13,153 

Total 54,551 

But this leaves out the losses of the Ninth 
Corps, except in the last battle. It was not for- 
mally incorporated into the Army of the Potomac 
until after the battle of Spottsylvania, and hence 
not included in the report of General Meade. 
If its losses were half as heavy as that of the other 
corps, the number would swell to the fearful 
amount of sixty thousand, of whom three thou- 
sand were officers, many of them the flower of the 
Army of the Potomac. The Confederate loss, as 



332 LIFE OF GRANT. 

stated by southern officers and writers, was only 
18,000. It may have been a little more, but 
probably did not reach 20,000. The nature of 
the conflict made this disproportion inevitable — 
the enemy fighting behind works, except in the 
Wilderness. Here the disparity was owing to 
a different cause. Several reasons have been 
given for it, but in our estimation, the chief 
one has been overlooked. Separate reports on 
this battle have never been rendered, but we 
can approximate very near the truth. Our 
loss may be put at about 20,000, while that 
of Lee, according to the reports of the rebel 
surgeons, was only seven thousand. Yet here 
they did not fight behind breastworks, but out 
in the woods, like our own men. The inquiry 
then naturally arises, How came the loss to be so 
unequal ? Some have said that it was owing to 
the superiority of the Southern troops in the In- 
dian style of fighting that characterized that bat- 
tle, and to the dull gray color of their uniforms, 
which made them less conspicuous objects amid 
the foliage than our troops, with their light blue 
uniforms. There is doubtless some force in these 
reasons, especially the latter one, but we believe 
the chief one, although at first it seems paradoxi- 
cal, is to be found in our superiority of numbers. 
It must be remembered that the advantage which 
numbers give in battle is two-fold — first, the 



DISPARITY IN LOSSES. 333 

weight they impart to a charge or onset. The 
concentration of masses on a given point puts an 
inferior army at a great disadvantage. Second, 
numbers allow the extension of lines till they 
overlap, and hence outflank the enemy. But 
in the Wilderness Grant totally lost both these ad- 
vantages. The wood prevented both the concen- 
tration of masses on any portion of the rebel lines 
and any movement to overreach and lap it. 
Hence Grant^s numbers on this battle-field, which 
was not of his choosing, only furnished a larger 
mark to fire at. Artillery being out of the ques- 
tion, and the foliage so thick as to render objects 
at a little distance invisible, the troops, in order 
to fight at all, had to be in close proximity, 
actually face to face. But under these circum- 
stances, only about the same number on both 
sides could fire with any effect among the trees. 
Hence the firing was, in fact, nearly equal, while 
the enemy had twice as many men to fire at as 
we. The tens of thousands that thronged the 
forest on our side, and could only act as supports, 
furnished a mark so large that almost every rebel 
bullet — ^being fired at so close a range — that 
escaped a tree, would strike a soldier. ' Lee knew 
this would be so, and chose this strange battle- 
field for the sole purpose of putting the armies on 
an equality. 

There could be no order of battle in this Wil- 



334 LIFE OF GRANT. 

derness, and it was simply like shooting birds in 
the field, with the advantage on the rebel side of 
shooting into a large flock instead of a small one, 
and of course with the same cartrido-es doinar 
double execution. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

THE SIEGE. 

Disheartening aspect of affairs — Importance of Petersburg — Hun- 
ter succeeds Siegel — "Wilson's raid — Movement north of the 
James Eiver — Explosion of a Mine — Defeat of Hunter — Inva- 
sion of Early — Despondency — Grant's letter to "Washburn — 
Appoints Sheridan Commander of all the Forces around "Wash- 
ington and in the Middle Department — Checks Sheridan — 
Finally, bids him " Go in ! " — Effect of Sheridan's Victories — 
Grant attempts to get around Lee's left— Hancock attacked — 
"Winter operations — Almost a frightful disaster — Atlanta reach- 
ed — Grant's grief at the death of McPherson — His Letter to the 
Grandmother — Permits Sherman to cut loose from Atlanta — 
His views upon it — Is anxious to have Thomas attack Hood — 
Correspondence — Fort Fisher — Butler's disobedience — Capture 
of the place — Directs Sherman to come to him by sea — Coun- 
termands the order — Schofield ordered East — Stoneman's raid 
— ^Expedition against Mobile— Directions to Thomas — Concen- 
tric movements — Sheridan's raid — Correspondence with Lin- 
coln — Interview with him and Sherman — Eesolves to move. 

As Grant, from before Petersburg, surveyed 
his position, the prospect was gloomy enough. 
On every side rose strong works — not a single 
line of them, but successive ones. He was sorely 
disappointed in not taking Petersburg, and cen- 
sured those to whom he had given charge of the 
undertaking. We have not gone into the details 



336 LIFE OF GEANT. 

of the various efforts to capture it, nor of the one 
made by Grant after his arrival before it. There has 
been much recrimination among the officers com- 
manding the expeditions, and contradiction and 
confusion in the reports respecting the failure 
even of the last assault. 

The place was over twenty miles from Rich- 
mond, and its chief importance lay in the fact 
that its possession would give Grant nearly all 
the lines by which Lee's army was supplied. Pe- 
tersburg, therefore, was, to all intents, Richmond 
itself. Of course it was of the first importance, 
now that a regular siege was determined upon, to 
cut off these sources of supply, which could be 
done only either by extending his lines around 
the place to the south, or sending off separate 
forces to do it. 

Grant had previously put Hunter in Siegel's 
place, with directions to break up a branch rail- 
road, running through Staunton, by which quan- 
tities of supplies were forwarded in that direction, 
while Wilson, with a heavy force of cavalry, was 
sent to cut the railroads south. The latter suc- 
ceeded in breaking up a portion of them, so that 
it took the enemy some time to put them in work- 
ing order again. 

Grant, in the meantime, by the various plans 
he set on foot, kept Lee constantly on the alert, 
for his blows fell now on one side and noAv on the 



HUNTER RETREATS. 337 

other, and often in a most unexpected time and 
place. He moved a heavy force north of the 
James River, to cut the railroad " from near Rich- 
mond to the Anna River," and some severe fight- 
ing took place ; for Lee, made aware of the move- 
ment, sent a large force to check it. Anticipat- 
ing this, Grant ordered a mine, that had been dug in 
front of the Ninth Corps, to be sprung, and the ex- 
plosion to be followed by a vigorous assault of the 
enemy's lines at that point. It came near being a 
success, and Grant thought that, with a little more 
promptness in advancing, Petersburg might have 
been captured. But now a new cause of anxiety 
arose. Hunter, who had marched triumphantly up 
the Shenandoah Valley till he lay siege to Lynch- 
burg, was finally, from want of ammunition, com- 
pelled to retreat. If he had moved as Grant an- 
ticipated, this would not have happened. Forced 
to return by the circuitous way of Kanawha, he ne- 
cessarily left the Shenandoah Valley unprotected, 
and Early, sweeping down through it, .crossed the 
Potomac into Maryland, and threatened Baltimore 
and Washington. Despatch after despatch, show- 
ing the wildest alarm, was now sent to Grant 
from the Capital, and the President was besought 
to recall the army from Richmond. But he stub- 
bornly refused to do so, saying that he had im- 
plicit confidence in General Grant, and should 
leave him to take his own course to avert the 

15 



338 LIFE OF GRANT. 

threatened danger. The latter immediately de- 
spatched the Sixth Corps to Washington, which 
with the Nineteenth Corps, just arrived from New 
Orleans, proved sufficient to drive the enemy back. 
As soon as Grant found that Early was retreating, 
he ordered the troops back to Petersburg for the 
purpose of making an attack on Lee while weaken- 
ed by the absence of this force. But before the 
Sixth Corps left Washington, he was informed 
that Early was returning down the Valley, and he 
countermanded the order, and directed it to return 
to Harper s Ferry. 

This unpropitious state of affairs, of course, 
caused a great deal of anxiety throughout the 
country, and Grant was overwhelmed with visits 
from Members of Congress, and other distinguish- 
ed men, and with letters, all wishing to know his 
feelings, and what the prospects were of success. 
The following letter to his friend, Mr. Washburne, 
clearly sets forth his views at this time of general 
despondency, and reveals that calm courage and 
confidence which never forsook him : 

" Headquaetees Aemies of the U. S., I 
City Point, Va., Aug. 16, 1864. S 

" Deak Sie : I state to all citizens who visit me, that 
all we want now, to ensure an early restoration of the 
Union, is a determined unity of sentiment North. 

" The rebels have now in their ranks their last man. 
The little boys and old men are guarding prisoners, 
guarding railroad bridges, and forming a good part of 



LETTER TO WASHBURNE. 339 

tlieir garrisons or intrenched positions. A man lost by 
tbem cannot be replaced. They have robbed the cradle 
and the grave equally to get their present force. Be- 
sides what they lose in frequent skirmishes and battles, 
they are now losing from desertions and other causes, at 
least one regiment per day. With this drain upon them, 
the end is not far distant, if we will only be true to our- 
selves. Their only hope now is in a divided North. 
This might give them reinforcements from Tennessee, 
Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri, while it would 
weaken us. With the draft quietly enforced, the enemy 
would become despondent, and would make but little 
resistance. 

" I have no doubt but the enemy are exceedingly anx- 
ious to hold out until after the Presidential election. 
They have many hopes from its effects. They hope a 
counter-revolution. They hope the election of the 
Peace candidate. In fact, like Micawber, they hope for 
something to ' turn up.' Our peace friends, if they 
expect peace from separation, are much mistaken. It 
would be but the beginning of war, with thousands of 
Northern men joining the South, because of our disgrace 
in allowing separation. To ' have peace on any terms,' 
the South would demand the restoration of their slaves 
already freed ; they would demand indemnity for losses 
sustained, and they would demand a treaty which would 
make the North slave-hunters for the South ; they 
would demand pay for, or the restoration of, every slave 
escaped to the North." 

In the meantime, the telegraph wires between 
him and Washington being often down, frequently 
causing a whole day to elapse before his despatches 
could be received by the Secretary of War, he de- 
termined to have all the forces in West Virginia, 
Washington, Susquehanna, and the Middle De- 
partment placed under one officer, capable of man- 



\ 



340 LIFE OF GRANT. 

aging affairs without particular and constant di- 
rections from him, and on his recommendation, it 
was done. He then ordered Sheridan to report 
to Halleck, for the purpose of being on hand 
when he should be appointed to this important 
command. He himself left City Point and visit- 
ed Hunter, then encamped on the Monocacy, and 
after seeing for himself the condition of things, 
directed him to concentrate all his forces near 
Harper s Ferry. He no sooner saw the troops in 
motion, than he telegraphed to Sheridan to come 
on by the morning train, and put himself at the 
head of the army. 

On the 6th of August, after a conversation 
with him in regard to the situation and future 
military operations, he returned to City Point, 
feeling that the day of blunders in the Shenandoah 
Valley was over. Knowing, however, how fatal 
to his operations around Richmond a defeat here 
would be, he would not permit Sheridan to bring 
on, as he wished, a decisive battle with Early. 
But Sheridan was impatient, and confident also 
of success, and Grant, feeling that it was impor- 
tant to relieve Maryland and Pennsylvania from 
the constant danger of invasion, and at the same 
time obtain full control of the Baltimore & Ohio 
Pailroad, and Chesapeake Canal, at last deter- 
mined to accede to his wishes. But, knowing 
that Lee's object in manoeuvring in the Shenan- 



SHERIDAN DEFEATS EARLY. 341 

doah Valley was to draw his army away from 
Riclimond, and hence that it was of vital import- 
ance that no risk of defeat should be taken, he con- 
cluded not to telegraph the permission to Sheri- 
dan to bring on a battle, but go on himself and 
take a minute survey of the position of the two 
armies. He left City Point in the middle of Sep- 
tember, and met Sheridan at Charlestown. The 
latter was very positive and decided in his views, 
and Grant said, " he pointed out so distinctly how 
each army lay : what he would do the moment he 
was authorized to move, and expressed such confi- 
dence of success, that I saw that but two words of 
instructions were necessary : ' Go in ! ' I asked him 
if he could get out his teams and supplies in time 
to make an attack on the ensuing Tuesday morn- 
ing. His reply was, that he could, before day- 
light Monday morning. He was off promptly to 
time, and I may add, that the result was such 
that I have never since deemed it necessary to 
visit General Sheridan before o-ivino; him orders." 
The latter soon sent Early " whirling through 
Winchester." His decisive victory put an entirely 
different face on matters about E-ichmond, for in- 
stead of Grant being called upon for reinforcements 
for the Shenandoah Valley, Lee was ; and troops 
that he had designed to operate in the region of 
Culpepper and Alexandria, had to be forwarded 
to Early. Thus strengthened, the latter again 



342 LIFE OF GRANT. 

moved down tlie Valley, and though beaten again, 
finally, on the 19th of October, fell on our army 
before daylight, while Sheridan was absent, and 
swept its camps like a whirlwind. The timely ar- 
rival of Sheridan, however, restored the battle, and 
the enemy, beaten and routed, was driven from 
the Valley forever. This overwhelming victory 
sealed the fate of Richmond. If Early had con- 
quered, more troops than Grant could spare would 
have had to be sent away from the siege, but now 
he fjathered the reinforcements to himself. 

He now determined, if possible, to sweep around 
Lee's right flank, and get possession of the South 
Side Railroad, running into Richmond. So, on 
the 27th of October, he despatched the Second 
Corps under Warren, and two divisions of the 
Fifth Corps, with a force of cavalry in ad^^ance, 
to force Hatcher's Run, lying beyond the extrem- 
ity of his line, on the left. The movement was 
successful, and the advance got mthin six miles 
of the railroad, but Grant, finding that he had 
been anticipated by Lee, who had erected strong 
works in his front to bar his further progress, di- 
rected the troops to return. He waited until it 
was reported that the two Corps had formed a 
junction, when, feeling no further anxiety, he re- 
turned to his headquarters. But the report was 
not true — the gap was not closed, and the watch- 
ful enemy dashed into it, and a bloody combat 



ALMOST A DISASTER. 343 

followed. Hancock repulsed liim, though with 
heavy loss. 

Butler, at the same time, was directed to move 
against the enemy on the north side of the James 
Hiver, but no important results were secured. 
"From this time forward," says Grant, "the 
operations in front of Petersburg and Richmond, 
until the spring campaign of 1865, were confined 
to the defence and extension of our lines, and to 
offensive movements for crippling the lines of com- 
munication, and to prevent his detaching any 
considerable force to send South." By mid- 
winter his lines reached Hatcher's Run, while the 
Weldcu Railroad was destroyed for many miles. 

But during this winter, so comparatively quiet, 
an event occurred which came very near ending 
in a disaster that would have been almost irrepa- 
rable. Grant makes no mention of it in his 
report, because it actually affected only the navy, 
while the naval report takes but little notice of it, 
because, so far as the navy was concerned, but 
little harm was done. 

Lee, finding that he must abandon all hope of 
drawing Grant away by operating near Washing- 
ton, conceived the daring plan of cutting off his 
communications, and thus starving the army into a 
retreat. The absence of our war-vessels operating 
in front of Fort Fisher, furnished an opportunity 
to do this which seemed to the enemy almost provi- 



344 LIFE OF GRANT. 

dential. On the 24th -of January, three ii'on- 
clads and three wooden vessels, with a flotilla of 
torpedo-boats, came down the James River, intend- 
ing to run the batteries, take City Point, and thus 
cut off the base of supplies for the whole army, 
and divide the forces north and south of the 
James. A large rebel force was massed north of 
the river, to make an overwhelming assault on the 
army there, as soon as City Point was reached. 
A high tower, erected at the latter place for ob- 
servation by Grant, was to be set on fire as a sig- 
nal of success, and at the same time, of attack. 
The vessels came boldly down in the darkness, and 
it was soon evident that we had nothing on shore 
or in the river that could stop their progress, and 
consternation seized our army along the banks. 
The Onondaga, on guard, retreated down the river 
without attempting a defence. By good fortune, 
or rather through an over-ruling Providence, the 
iron-clads ran aground, and were stopped midway 
in their triumphant career. The country did not 
know what a narrow escape Grant and his army 
had, but the Government did. A committee of 
investigation was appointed, and the universal tes- 
timony was, that if these vessels had not gone 
aground, the siege of Pichmond would have been 
raised, to say nothing of the disasters that might 
have befallen the army. City Point once oc- 
cupied by the rebels, not a pound of food could 



DEATH OF MCPHERSON. 345 

have reached our troo23S. Grant alone testified 
that he did not think the disaster would have been 
irreparable, and he, only on the single ground that 
he had provisions enough on hand to last, with 
great economy, two weeks, and by the end of that 
time he thought the Government would have been 
able to re-open his communications. On the prob- 
able success of outside efforts alone, he testified, 
he relied for salvation. What fearful issues hung 
on the simple question, whether those three iron- 
clads could clear the shoals. 

But Grant would not have been accountable 
for the misfortune, had it occurred. The navy 
alone would have been compelled to bear the 
blame. 

But though Grant's plans had partially failed 
in his direct operations against Richmond, they 
had been crowned with complete success in other 
portions of the extended field. Sherman had, 
during the summer, pushed his triumphant way 
to Atlanta. Grant's delight at his success was 
marred, however, by a sad event — the death of 
his dearest friend, McPherson, who fell in one of 
the battles before the place. When the sad news 
reached him his strong nature gave way, and 
bursting into tears, he exclaimed, " The country 
has lost one of its hest soldiers^ and I have lostmj 
best ffnend.'''' 

Mcpherson's grandmother, aged eighty-seven 

15* 



346 LIFE OF GRANT. 

years, hearing that Grant, Avhen told of his death, 
retired to his tent and wept, wrote him a letter. 
To this the latter sent the following tender, touch- 
ing response : 

Headquartees Armies of the U. S., ) 
City Point, Va., Aug. 10, 1864. J 
Mrs. Lydia Slocum: 

My Dear Madam : Your very welcome letter of the 
3d instant has reached me. I am glad to know that 
the relatives of the lamented Major-General MePher- 
son are aware of the more than friendship existing be- 
tween him and myself A nation grieves at the loss of 
one so dear to our nation's cause. It is a selfish grief, 
because the nation had more to expect from him than 
from almost any one living. I join in this selfish grief, 
and add the grief of personal love for the departed. 
He formed, for some time, one of my mihtary family. 
I knew him well ; to know him was to love. It may 
be some consolation to you, his aged grandmother, to 
know that every officer and every soldier who served 
under your grandson felt the highest reverence for his 
patriotism, his zeal, his great, almost unequalled 
ability, his amiability, and all the manly virtues that 
can adorn a commander. Your bereavement is great, 
but cannot exceed mine. 

Yours truly, U. S. Geant. 

Sherman, having captured Atlanta, wrote to 
Grant asking permission to let Hood alone, and 
inarch across the country to Savannah. Grant, 
in reply, asked him if it did not look as if 
"Hood was going to attempt the invasion of Mid- 
dle Tennessee, using the Mobile and Ohio, Mem- 
phis and Charleston roads, to supply his base on 
the Tennessee river, about Florence or Decatur. 



ORDERS TO SHERMAN. 347 

If he does this, he ought to be met and prevented 
from gettino- north of the Tennessee river. If 
you were to cut loose I do not believe you would 
meet Hood's army, but would be bushwhacked by 
all the old men, little boj^s, and such railroad 
guards as are still left at home. Hood would 
probably strike for Nashville, thinking that by 
going north he could inflict greater damage upon 
us than we could upon the rebels by going south. 
If there is any way of getting at Hood's army I 
would prefer that, but I must trust to your own 
judgment." With that prescience which distin- 
guishes the great commander, he here traces out 
the exact course that Hood afterwards took. 
But Sherman still urged that he might be per- 
mitted to strike across the country, saying, " Hood 
may turn into Kentucky and Tennessee, but I be- 
lieve he will be forced to follow me." Grant's 
forecast was the truest, and his plan unquestionably 
the safest and best if any other commander than 
Thomas had been left to take care of Hood. He, 
however, finally gave his consent in the following 
despatch: " Your despatch of to-day received. 
If you are satisfied the trip to the sea-coast can 
be made holding the line of the Tennessee river 
firmly, you may make it, destroying all the rail- 
roads south of Dalton or Chattanooga as you 
think best." 

It was his ori";inal desi2"n t ) have Sherman 



348 LIFE OF GRANT. 

push through to the sea-coast, and thus cut the 
Confederacy in two ; but his plan was to have 
him hold Atlanta, and get through by garrisons 
stationed all along the railroad — Atlanta being 
the base — but not destroy it and cut loose entirely, 
as he did. 

When Hood finally started north. Grant said 
he was going to his certain doom ; and that if he 
were directing his movements, he would not alter 
them. 

When the rebel army finally appeared before 
Nashville, in the latter part of December, Grant 
became very anxious to have Thomas attack him 
at once. 

But though the latter was to all appearance 
ready to take the field, he was sadly deficient in 
cavalry. He wished not only to defeat Hood, 
but to have the means of pursuing him when 
beaten. Grant finally telegraphed him that he 
wished him to move at once upon the enemy, and 
he replied that he was not ready. Grant sent 
back word that he had more confidence in him 
than any other man, and to take his own time ; 
still, he would like to know the reasons of his de- 
lay. But Thomas, determined that in no way 
should these reasons leak out on the road, did 
not give them. 

Grant, fearing that Hood would leave Nash- 
ville and cross the Cumberland into Kentucky, 



CAPTURE OF FORT FISHER. 349 

felt so impatient at Thomas' delay, that he left 
City Point and started west, to superintend mat- 
ters in person. He never could stay away from 
any point, whether in battle or out of it, when 
the danger was pressing. But when he reached 
Washington, he met the despatch of Thomas an- 
nouncing his victory. "I was delighted," he 
says ; "all fears and apprehensions were dispelled." 
He, however, still thinks that it would have been 
better, had Thomas attacked Hood before he had 
time to fortify ; but says in his frank, generous 
way, "his final defeat of Hood was so complete, 
that it will be accepted as a vindication of that dis- 
tinguished officer s judgment." This victory, and 
Sherman's triumphant entrance into Savannah, 
lighted up the winter to Grant at City Point, and 
made him see clearly the approaching end of the 
struo;o;le. 

The capture of Fort Fisher was another bright 
gleam above the horizon. In the first expedition 
against this stronghold, Grant, in furnishing the 
land forces, designated Weitzel to command them ; 
but they being taken from Butler's army, he, of 
course, sent his instructions through the latter 
officer. These did "not order an assault, but said, 
the first object is to close to the enemy the port 
of Wilmington, which as yet had not been done." 
But Butler never gave these instructions to 
Weitzel at all ; and the latter told Grant he was 



350 LIFE OF GRANT. 

not aware of their existence until he saw them in 
Butler's official report of the failure of the expe- 
dition. 

Butler quietly pocketed them, and coolly took 
command himself. Grant says, " I had no idea 
of General Butler s accompanying the expedition 
until the evening before it got off from Bermuda 
Hundred ; and then did not dream but that 
General Weitzel had received all the instructions, 
and would be in command." He thought, he 
said, "that he was going to witness the effect of 
the explosion of the powder boat." Grant's in- 
dignation was aroused at this bold contempt of 
his orders and breach of military discipline that 
deserved a court martial, and soon after put Ord 
in his place. 

Porter, who would not retire from before the 
fort, after Butler withdrew the army, wrote to 
Grant that it could be taken ; and so the latter 
sent another force, under General Terry as com- 
mander. This expedition succeeded, and Wil- 
mino;ton soon after fell. 

Sherman having reached Savannah, Grant 
sent a despatch to him, in which he gave direc- 
tions " that after establishing a base on the sea- 
coast, with necessary garrisons to include all his 
artillery and cavalry, to come by water to City 
Point with the balance of his command." But 
finding it difficult to get ocean transportation, and 



HOOD DEFEATED. 351 

seeing that it would take two months to bring the 
army on, he changed his mind and thought Sher- 
man might, perhaps, better operate from where 
he was. But in the meantime he received a letter 
from him sketching his daring plan of marching 
up by land, and forming a junction with him be- 
fore Richmond. His confidence that he could do 
so pleased Grant, and he immediately sent back 
a despatch directing him to carry out his own 
plan. 

The total rout of Hood in Tennessee removed 
all danger from the enemy in that quarter, and 
released the troops under Thomas so that they 
could be used elsewhere, and Grant now ordered 
Schofield, with the Twenty-third Corps, number- 
ing twenty-one thousand men, east, for the pur- 
pose of making an advance inland — either from 
Wilmington or Newbern, toward Goldsboro\ to 
cooperate with Sherman's movements. Helping 
to reduce the former place, Schofield was direc- 
ted to make it his base of operations, while an- 
other column pushed inland from Newbern. In 
addition to this. Grant directed Thomas to send 
Gen. Stoneman with a large cavalry force across 
the mountains into South Carolina, to destroy 
railroads and material of war, and at the same 
time release our prisoners at Salisbmy, N. C. 
But Sherman's rapid march north caused a change 
in this plan, and Stoneman was directed to oper- 



352 LIFE OF GRANT. 

ate against tKe railroad toward Ljaicliburg. This 
concentric movement of various forces shows the 
comprehensiveness of Grant's mind, and the re- 
morseless energy and determination with which 
he pushed his adversary. The heavens were 
gathering blacker than midnight above Lee, and 
it thundered all around the horizon. 

Wliile thus concentrating his own forces. Grant, 
in order to prevent the enemy from doing the same 
by bringing up reinforcements from the extreme 
South, ordered Canby, who had relieved Banks, 
to organize an expedition against Mobile. "This," 
Grant wrote to Thomas, " will attract all the at- 
tention of the enemy, and leave an advance from 
your stand-point easy. I think it advisable, there- 
fore," he said, " that you prepare as much of a cav- 
alry force as you can spare, and hold it in readi- 
ness to go South." He designed to have this 
force push deep into Alabama, destrojnng the 
rebel communications, and dispersing and cap- 
turing detached bodies of the enemy. 

The armies East and West under his hand had 
not proved a balky team, but had pulled steadily 
together, and were now, at a rapid pace, nearing 
the goal. 

From this brief sketch of the various plans of 
Grant and the movements he set on foot during 
this winter, how like a single machine our vast 
and scattered forces appear in his grasp ! Sej^a- 



THE END APPROACHING. 353 

rated by tliousands of miles — ^lofty mountains and 
broad rivers intervening, — yet all like so many 
wheels obeying a central force till one could al- 
most count tbe da^^s when the iron walls would 
close forever around Confederacy. 

Success now did not depend on any great pitch- 
ed battle, though it might be hastened by one. 
It was secure, whether that was fought or not. 
There was a mathematical certainty about it that 
must have been appalling to Lee. Grant's move- 
ments were like the finger on the dial-plate of a 
clock, moving round with a uniform, steady mo- 
tion, until the given hour is reached, when the re- 
lentless hammer will strike. 

In order to assist Sherman, who was compara- 
tively weak in cavalry, Grant, while these various 
movements were being; set on foot, directed Sheri- 
dan, who also was foot-loose in the Shenandoah 
Valley, to push on to Lynchburg, and after destroy- 
ing the railroad and canal, endeavor by heading 
the streams to reach Sherman toiling up from 
Savannah. 

Sheridan, with twenty thousand cavalry, started 
on the 27th of February, and pushed on to Lynch- 
burg ; but the enemy burning the bridges over 
the James River, he could not get across, and so, 
after destroying every thing within his reach, 
moved down the north bank of the stream toward 
Richmond — causinsr the Avildest consternation in 



354 LIFE OF GRANT. 

the capital. Columns were at once hurried off 
to meet this new danger, but Sheridan sweeping 
swiftly across the country reached the White 
House in safety. After resting here awhile, he 
crossed the James River and joined Grant. 

Every thing now was moving but the Army of 
the Potomac — Sherman was at Goldsboro', Canby 
thundering at the gates of Mobile, while two cav- 
alry expeditions were afoot, one pushing into 
Alabama, and the other toAvards Lynchburg. 
Grant saw that the time to strike, at last had 
come. In the meantime the President visited 
him at headquarters. Not expecting to do so, he 
sometime previous wTote him the following en- 
couraging letter : 

" Lieutenant- General Grant : 

" JS'ot expecting to see you before the spring cam- 
paign opens, I wish to express, in this way, my entire 
satisfaction with what you have done up to this time, 
so far as I understand it. The particulars of your plans I 
neither know nor seek to laiow. You are vigilant and 
self-reliant ; and, pleased with this, I wish not to ob- 
trude any restraints or constraints upon you. "While 
I am very anxious that any great disaster or capture of 
our men in great numbers shall be avoided, I know 
that these points are less likely to escape your attention 
than they would be mine. If there be any thing want- 
ing which is within my power to give, do not fail to 
let me know it. And now, with a brave army and a 
just cause, may God sustain you. 

" Yours, very truly, A. Lincoln." 



LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT. 355 

Toucbed with this mark of confidence, Grant 
returned the following frank, characteristic reply : 

'' The President : 

" Your very kind letter of yesterday is just received. 
The conlidence you express for the future, and satisfac- 
tion for the past, in my military administration, is ac- 
knowledged with pride. It shall be my earnest endeavor 
that you and the country shall not he disappointed. From 
my iirst entrance into the volunteer service of the coun- 
try to the present day, I have never had cause of com- 
plaint, have never expressed or implied a complaint 
against the Administration, or the Secretary of War, 
for throwing any embarrassment in the way of my vig- 
orously prosecuting what appeared to be my duty. In- 
deed, since the promotion which placed me in command 
of all the armies, and in view of the great responsibili- 
ty and importance of success, I have been astonished 
at the readiness with which every tiling asked for has 
been yielded, without even an explanation being asked. 

" Should my success be less than I desire and ex- 
pect, the least 1 can say is, the fault is not with you. 
" Very truly, your obedient servant, 

" U. S. Grant, Lieut.-General." 

Sherman also came up from Goldsboro', to con- 
sult with him about his plans. The latter told 
him the army was about to move around Lee's 
right — to turn Petersburg, and assist Sheridan, 
who would be sent with a strong force of cavalry 
to destroy the South Side and Danville railroads, 
and thus cut otf Lee's supplies. He therefore di- 
rected him to march north towards Dinwiddle 
Court House, to cooperate with this movement. 
The latter hurried back, while Grant issued his 



356 LIFE OF GRANT. 

orders for his army to move."^" He had, as he says, 
" spent days of anxiety lest each morning should 
bring the report that the enemy had retreated the 
night before." His various movements had been 
organized at such vast distances, thus giving pre- 
monitions of their character so long beforehand, 
that he felt that a skilful commander like Lee, 
would not remain to be cooped up in Richmond 
and starved to death, but retreat in time to effect a 
junction with Johnston operating against Sher- 
man. If he succeeded in this, a new campaign 
would have to be organized, and hence new de- 
lays become inevitable. 

There has never been given a satisfactory expla- 
nation for Lee's strange conduct in madly clinging 
to Richmond until escape was impossible. Doubt- 
less one great reason was, consciousness of his 
inability to hold his army together the moment 
it was put on the march from the abandoned 
capital. 

* Vide Appendix. 



i 



y^ 



oRAjcr 





E B. Treat & C9, 654 Broadv/aT; NewYorlt . 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

THE LAST GREAT MOVEMENT. 

Attack of Lee — Sheridan's Orders — The Movement Begun — Sheri- 
dan's Orders revoked — Grant changes his Plan and resolves 
" to Finish the Job " — Battle of Five Forks — Storming of the 
Works — The Victory — Evacuation of Eichmond ordered — 
Davis receives the News in Church — Incredulity of the People — 
Scene in the Capital — Terrific Scene in the Streets— Blowing- 
up of the Eebel Iron-clads — Burning of the Bridges and "Ware- 
houses — The City takes fire — A maddened Populace — "Weitzel 
and Ewell — Their Eegimental Bands — The Morning — Entering 
the City— The Conflagration continues — The Capitol-square at 
Night. 

Grant's order to Meade for the great final 
movement was dated March 24th. By a singular 
coincidence, the very next day Lee assumed the 
offensive, and made a bold dasli on Grants lines 
South of the Appomattox Eiver, and directly in 
fi:*ont of the Ninth Corps, and actually broke 
through, carrying Fort Steadman, and turned its 
guns upon our troops. But the force on either 
flank held its gromid, while the rebel soldiers 
could not be induced to leave the breastworks to 
charge again our broken lines. Reserves being 
brought up, they were driven out, and their own 
intrenched picket-line seized and held, though Lee 
made desperate efforts to retake it. 



358 LIFE OF GRANT. 

This bold attack of Lee was tlie last expiring 
blow of a dying man, and must have been made 
with the desperate feeling of a gambler when he 
stakes his last dollar; for the three or four thousand 
men he lost here he could illy spare. Four days 
after, Sheridan moved oif to execute the task assign- 
ed him, while the Fifth and Sixth Corps followed 
after. That night he was at Dinwiddle Court 
House, with the infantry well up, and Grant saw 
himself in a favorable position " to end the mat- 
ter," as he said, and he wrote to Sheridan that 
"he/e/i like it^''' and therefore to abandon his raid 
on the railroads for the present, and, instead of 
cutting loose from the army, as he had du'ected 
him to do, to cooperate with it, and push on 
around the enemy to his rear. For two days it 
now rained incessantly, turning roads and fields 
into a quagmire, and making it well-nigh impos- 
sible to move any thing on wheels. The next 
day, however, Sheridan advanced to the neighbor- 
hood of Five Forks, where he found the enemy in 
force, while everywhere along the new line occu- 
pied by the infantry, the same state of things 
existed. Grant seeing this, and knowing that if 
he had been correctly informed of the strength of 
Lee's army, he could not man properly his extend- 
ed lines, reaching from Richmond to his present ex- 
treme right — he determined therefore to push 
his own line no farther to the left, but detach 



THE ASSAULT. 359 

one corps with Sheridan to turn the rebel flank, 
while he moved boldly to the assault in front, 
and " end the matter." 

More or less fighting now occurred, to get in 
proper position ; but on the 1st of April Sheridan, 
with the aid of Warren, captured the position at 
Five Forks, with all the artillery and five or six 
thousand prisoners. The remainder of the force, 
instead of falling back on the main army, turned 
westward, and, panic-stricken and demoralized, 
fled in every direction. Thus, at one fell blow, 
Lee saw his right wing " violently wrenched from 
his centre." He was aroused as by a thunder- 
clap at the fatal news. Grant received Sheri- 
dan's despatch that evening, and knowing what a 
terrible blow it was to Lee, feared he would 
retreat in the night-time, and falling on Sheridan 
as he did so, overwhelm him. He therefore in- 
stantly started off Miles' division to reinforce him, 
while he ordered all the guns in position to open 
on the works in front, and keep up the bombard- 
ment till four o'clock in the morning, at which 
time the assault was ordered. 

At the appointed hour, the attacking col- 
umns moved gallantly forward, and Wright and 
Ord carried every thing before them on their side. 
Parke broke the main line in his front, but could 
not carry the inner one, while Gibbon got posses- 
sion of two strong works. But inner works were 



360 LIFE OF GRANT. 

still held, where the enemy rallied — and amid 
shouts and yells, and roar of cannon, and vollies 
of musketry, a terrible conflict went on, especially 
around Fort Gregg, until Sheridan, swooping 
do-^Ti from the left, and a force sent by Meade 
from the front of Petersburg, closed in in that 
direction, shut down like the door of fate on 
the diminished garrisons, when they broke and 
fled in confusion. 

Evacuation of Richmond. 

These successes around Petersburg settled the 
fate of Richmond, and Lee sent a despatch to the 
War Department to have every thing in readiness 
to evacuate it. It is a curious fact that the in- 
habitants were totally ignorant of the terrible 
struggle which had been going on for the last 
three days between the two armies. The latest 
news from the front was that Lee, in a night 
attack, had defeated Grant with heavy loss — hence 
they were wholly unprepared for the appalling 
tidings that awaited them. "John M. Daniel, 
editor of the Richmond Examiner^ died that day, 
under the delusion that such a victory had been 
won, and John Mitchell, who wrote his obituary 
in the papers, expressed the regret that the great 
Virginian had passed away just as a decisive vic- 
tory was likely to give the turning-point to the 
success of the Southern Confederacy." 



EVACUATION OF RICHMOND. 361 

Davis was at church, when a messenger entered 
the aisle, and walking rapidly up to the pew in 
which he sat, handed him a slip of paper con- 
taining Lee''s despatch. Outwardly it seemed a 
slight event, but it struck deep as a bullet and as 
deadly, into the heart of the rebel president. 
Thouo-h with a strono; effort he mastered his emo- 
tions, his cheek blanched at the terrible tidings ; 
for he knew it to be the handwriting on the wall. 

The services had hardly closed, when it was 
evident from the faces of the few people seen in the 
quiet streets, that ominous tidings were in the air. 
The church-bells pealed their Sabbath tones as 
usual — the breath of spring stole softly in from 
the distant fields, and all was peaceful as the 
day of rest should be. Still, a strange sense 
of coming evil began to be felt; for rumors 
were afloat of some dire impending calam- 
ity. At length these began to assume shape, and 
white lips whispered in incredulous, astonished 
ears, that the city was to be given up to the 
enemy. Some smiled in unbelief, some laughed 
outright, at the absurd report ; while even to the 
believing it seemed hardly possible, as they heard 
the bells sweetly chiming, and saw women and 
children wending their way in tranquil security 
to church, that conquering battalions were about 
to shout along those streets. But officers gal- 
loping through them, and the din of preparation 

16 



362 LIFE OF GRANT. 

going on in various quarters, soon dispelled all 
doubt ; and then disorder and tumult swelled 
along every avenue. The change from the deep 
repose of Sabbath to the wild alarm and up- 
roar that followed, was appalling. Crowds, heav- 
ing in fierce agitation, poured along the streets — 
army wagons, loaded with boxes and trunks, 
drove furiously towards the Danville Depot ; pale 
women and ragged children streamed after, going 
they knew not whither ; excited men filled the air 
with blasphemies, while the more desperate surged 
up around the commissary depots, awaiting the 
signal for pillage. There w^as no order — no at- 
tempt on the part of any one to enforce it. Says 
one of their own writers : " The only convocation, 
the only scene of council that marked the fall of 
Richmond, took place in a dingy room in a corner 
of the upper story of the Capitol Building. In 
this obscure chamber assembled the city council 
of Richmond, to consult on the emergency, and 
to take measures to secure what of order w^as pos- 
sible in the scenes about to ensue. It appeared 
to represent all that was left of deliberation in the 
Confederate capital. It was a painful contrast to 
look upon this scene, to traverse the now ahnost 
silent Capitol House, so often vocal with oratory 
and crowded with the busy scenes of legislation ; 
t-o hear the echo of the footstep, and at last to 
climb to the dismal show of councilmen in the 



EVACUATION OF RICHMOND. 363 

remote room, where a half dozen sat at a rude 
table, and not so many vacant idlers listened to 
their proceedings. At the head of the board sat 
an illiterate grocer, of the name of Saunders, who 
was making his last exhibition of Southern spirit; 
and twenty-four hours thereafter was subscribing 
himself to some very petty Federal officer, ' most 
respectfully your most obedient servant.'' Here 
and there, hurrying up with the latest news from 
the War Department, was Mayor Mayo — excited, 
incoherent — chewing tobacco defiantly ; but yet 
full of pluck, having the mettle of the true Vir- 
ginia gentleman, stern and watchful to the last, in 
fidelity to the city that his ancestors had assisted 
in founding, and exhibiting, no matter in what com- 
ical aspects, a courage that no man ever doubted." 
Such is the picture of the oficial ^proceedings 
that dignified the downfall of the haughty rebel cap- 
ital. Humiliating as it is, it stands out in bright 
relief as contrasted with the scene that took place 
outside of the building. There the strong hand 
of military power was at last withdrawn — the 
breathless fear of unsparing despotism gone — the 
last restraint even of common humanity removed, 
and wild terror held high carnival in the doomed 
capital, over whose dwellings arose a fearful and 
confused murmur — the prelude of the coming 
storm. The excitement and tumult i^rowinfi: 
fiercer as evening drew on, the mayor attempted 



364 LIFE OF GRANT 

to restore order by calling out two regiments of 
militia and establishing patrols, and destroying 
all the liquor in the stores and warehouses ; but 
militia and patrols, as soon as darkness closed 
over the city, became swallowed up in the mad- 
dened throng that surged unchecked through the 
streets. The gutters ran with liquor, and drunken, 
frenzied men reeled, with hideous blasphemies on 
their lips, along the side-walks that were loaded 
with broken glass and the contents of pillaged 
stores. Wild cries of distress mingled with the 
horrid oaths that made night hideous, and the 
city became a scene of horror and terror inde- 
scribable. But as if this were not enough. General 
Ewell, commanding Lee's rear-guard north of the 
James, blew up the iron-clad vessels in the river ; 
and before the earthquake shock had hardly 
passed away, the three bridges that spanned the 
stream were ablaze, ribbing the darkness with 
their long lines of flame. The next moment, four 
huge tobacco warehouses were wrapped in fire, 
shooting murky clouds of smoke and fiery sparks 
into the heavens. The neighboring houses caught 
fire; and the conflagration passing all control, 
raged unchecked along the streets, and roared like 
the ocean over the abandoned city. As the light 
fell on the terror-stricken or ferocious faces of the 
yelling crowd, it seemed as if the infernal depths 
had vomited up its inhabitants. 



ENTRANCE OF THE FEDERALS. 365 

But while this frightful scene was going on in 
the city, outside, the air was filled with strains of 
music, Weitzel, who commanded our forces on 
the north side of the James, in front of whom was 
EwelFs rear-guard, had been directed by Grant to 
make as great a demonstration as possible. He, 
therefore, as night closed in, set all his regimental 
bands playing. Ewell ordered his own to re- 
spond ; and hour after hour the melodious strains 
echoed through the night, presenting a strange 
contrast to the savage yells and tumult within. 
But at midnight the music suddenly ceased, and 
EwcU quietly withdrew ; while Weitzel gazed in 
astonishment and doubt on the lurid heavens 
above the Capital. 

When morning broke he found that the enemy 
in his fi'ont was gone, and he immediately sent 
forward a body of horse to reconnoitre. 

The sun was a little over an hour high when 
these troopers, forty in number, appeared in Main 
street. Suddenly the cry of " Yankees ! " " The 
Yankees are come ! " swept in Avild clamor up the 
street, the upper end of which was choked with a 
crowd of men, women, and children — some with 
carts, others rolling along barrels, or staggering 
mider the weight of plunder. 

As the shout of "Yankees" smote their ears, 
these rushed away in terror, cursing and tramp- 
ling on each other in savage fury. The troops 



366 LIFE OF GRANT. 

walked their horses till they reached the corner 
of Eleventh Street, when they broke into a trot 
for the Public Square, and riding straight up to 
the Capitol planted their guidons on its top, where 
they fluttered proudly in the breeze. A few 
hours later, the heads of Weitzel's columns ap- 
peared in the streets. Says a lady who witnessed 
the entrance : " Stretching from the Exchange 
Hotel to the slope of Church Hill, doAvn the hill, 
through- the valley, up the ascent to the hotel, was 
the array, with its unbroken line of blue, fringed 
with bright bayonets. Strains of martial music, 
flushed countenances, waving swords, betokened 
the victorious army. As the line turned at the 
Exchange Hotel into the upper street, the move- 
ment was the signal for a wild burst of cheers 
from each regiment. Shouts from a few negroes 
were the only response. Through throngs of sul- 
len spectators, along the line of fire, in the midst 
of the horrors of a conflagration increased by the 
explosion of shells left by the retreating army, 
through curtains of smoke, throusfh the vast aerial 
auditorium convulsed with the commotion of 
frightful sounds, moved the gay procession of 
the grand army, with horse, music, and bright 
banners, and wild cheers. A regiment of negro 
cavalry swept by the hotel. As they turned the 
street-corner they drew their sabres with sav- 
age shouts, and the blood mounted even in 



CONFLAGRATION. 367 

my woman's heart with quick throbs of de- 
fiance." 

Meanwhile the conflao-ration rao;ed with un- 
checked fury. The entire business part of the 
city was on fire — stores, warehouses, manufacto- 
ries, mills, depots, and bridges, covering acres of 
gTound, were in flames, while the continuous 
thunder of exploding shells added ten-fold to the 
horrors of the scene. All during the forenoon, 
flame and smoke and showers of blazing sparks 
filled the air, spreading still further the destruc- 
tion until every bank, every auction store, every 
insurance office, nearly every commission house, 
and most of the fashionable stores, were a heap 
of smouldering ruins. The atmosphere was so 
choking that " men, women and children crowded 
into the square of the capital for a breath of pure 
air ; and one traversed the green slopes blinded 
by cinders and struggling for breath. Already 
piles of furniture had been collected there, dragged 
from the ruins of burning houses, and in uncouth 
arrangements made with broken tables and 
bureaus, were huddled women and children with 
no other resting-place in Heaven's great hollow- 
ness." Deep apathetic silence visited the city at 
night after the fire had burned itself out, and 
clouds of black smoke like a funeral pall hung 
over the smouldering ruins. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

THE RETREAT AND SURRENDER. 

Tlie Pursuit — Swift Marching — Sheridan's Victory over Ewell — 
Lee cut off from Burkesville — Endeavors to reach Lynchburg — 
Grant's Letter to Sherman — Lee leaves the Highway, and takes 
to the Thickets — Headed off by Sheridan — Grant addresses a 
Note to Lee asking him to surrender — The Reply — Correspon- 
dence — Lee resolves to cut his way through Sheridan's Cav- 
alry — The Attempt abandoned — Lee seeks an Interview with 
Grant — Description of the Meeting — The Surrender of the Army 
agreed upon — The Surrender — Grant visits Washington — The 
President tells him a Dream — Is sent down to receive tlie Sur- 
render of Johnston — The Army starts for Home — Grand Review 
in the Capital. 

While this terrific scene was being enacted 
in the rebel capital, the fugitive president was 
fleeing for his life, and the disorganized army of 
Lee was crowding along the highways and fields 
to escape the remorseless pursuit of Grant. 
Leaving to others the glory of entering the rebel 
capital, the latter was in the saddle guiding and 
urging on his victorious columns. 

Lee's great object now was to get to Danville, 
from v,^hence he could easily efi*ect a junction with 
Johnston, near Raleigh. On the other hand. 
Grant's great object was to cut him off from that 



THE RACE. 369 

point, and Sheridan was pushed on toward Burkes- 
ville, the junction of the raih'oads, while the Second 
and Sixth Corps were sent on to his support. 

The race between Lee's and Grant's armies was 
a desperate one ; the former marched swiftly along 
the north bank of the Appomattox, and the latter 
the south, both heading for Burke's Station, fifty- 
three miles from Petersburg, where the South- 
side and Danville Railroads intersect. If Grant 
reached it first, Lee's chances of escape were well 
nigh hopeless, and he knew it. But the former 
had the inside track. From the Rapidan to Rich- 
mond, a year before, Lee had it. Matters were 
reversed now, and Grant Avas not the general to 
let this advantage be lost; so the two armies 
strained forward, Sheridan all the while harassing 
the rebel flank. Lee's army marched for life, ours 
for victory. Our army, by putting forth hercu- 
lean efibrts, and marching^ as wearied men never 
marched before, reached it first, and Lee was cut 
off from Danville by that route. On Thursday 
afternoon, ^vith. the assistance of the Fifth and 
Sixth Corps, Sheridan completely cut off and cap- 
tured Ewell's entire column of nine thousand men, 
seven general officers, fifteen field-pieces of artil- 
lery, twenty-nine battle-flags, and six miles of 
wagon-trains. 

After reaching Burkesville, General Meade, 
with the greater portion of the Army of the Po- 
le* 



370 LIFE OF GRANT. 

tomac, took up the pursuit on the north side of 
the railroad ; while Sheridan's cavalry and Ord's 
Twenty-fourth Corps moved rapidly along the 
south side, Sheridan being constantly on Lee's 
flanks, frequently compelling him to halt and 
form line of battle, and as often engaging him, 
cutting off detachments, picking up stragglers, 
capturing cannon without number, and demor- 
alizing the enemy at every stand. On Friday, 
at Farmville, sixteen miles west of Burkesville, a 
considerable eno;ao;ement occurred, in which the 
Second Corps participated largely and suffered 
some loss. Lee, however, was compelled to con- 
tinue his retreat. At High Bridge, over the Ap- 
pomattox, he again crossed to the north side of 
the river, and two of our regiments, the Fifty- 
fourth Pennsylvania and One Hundred and Twen- 
ty-third Ohio, which were sent there to hold the 
bridge, were captured by a strong rebel cavalry 
force. The railroad bridge at this point, a very 
high and long structure, was burned by the 
enemy. "Lee now headed directly for Lynch- 
burg, in the hope of reaching a point where he 
could move around the front of our left wing, and 
escape toward Danville by a road which runs di- 
rectly south from a point about twenty miles east 
of Lynchburg. But his rear and flanks were so 
sorely pressed that he was compelled to skirmish 
nearly every step, and to destroy or abandon an 



THE PURSUIT. 371 

immense amount of property, while Sheridan was 
rapidly shooting ahead of him." 

Grant having received a despatch from the 
latter requesting his presence, mounted and hur- 
ried to the front. On the 5th, he had written to 
Sherman, saying: "Sheridan is up with Lee, and 
reports all that is left — horse, foot, and dragoons — 
at twenty thousand men, much demoralized. We 
hope to reduce this number one-half. I shall 
push on to Burkesville ; and if a stand is made at 
Danville, will, in a very few days, go there. If 
you can do so, push on from where you are, and 
let us see if we cannot, finish the job with Lee''s 
and Johnston's armies." 

He had said at the outset, when he started from 
Culpepper Court House, near the Rapidan, that 
he meant to follow Lee wherever he went ; and 
he was now doing it, and would do it, if it took 
him to the Gulf of Mexico. 

All next day the pursuit was kept up, and the 
fighting continued ; while, like a hunted stag, with 
the cry of the eager pack drawing nearer and 
nearer every moment, Lee strained forward with 
the mere Avreck of his army. But the foe was 
everywhere — the country on every side swarmed 
with Grant's troops ; and on the 7th the sore- 
pressed, disheartened army turned off the main 
roads, and toiled through dense thickets of oak and 
pine, that were here and there crossed only by a 



372 LIFE OF GRANT. 

wood road or path. It marched this day without 
much molestation, except now and then it was 
startled by Sheridan's bugles, as his bold troopers 
dashed on the meagre trains. The next day it 
struck a main road and marched rapidly till dark, 
when it quietly went into camp. No foe was in 
sight —the air no longer echoed with Sheridan's 
bugles, and to all appearance the way was clear 
to Lynchburg. During the night the general offi- 
cers held a consultation on the condition of affairs, 
and the proper movements to be made in the 
morning. But before they had come to any con- 
clusion, the boom of Sheridan's cannon in front 
startled them like a sudden thunder-peal ; for it 
told them that the road to Lynchburg was blocked 
up by the enemy. Ord was to the south, so that 
they were cut off in that direction ; while Meade 
was thundering in the rear. It was plain there 
was no way of escape, unless they could cut a 
road through Sheridan's cavalry. 

In the mean time Grant, who knew that Lee 
would soon be enclosed in his net, had tAvo days 
before addressed him the following note : 

April 7, 1865. 
General R. E. Lee, Commanding G. S. A. 

General : The result of the last week must convince 
you of the hopelessness of fui'ther resistance on the part 
of the Army of ]^orthern Yirginia in this struggle. I 
feel that it is so, and regard it as my duty to shift from 
myself tlie responsibility of any farther effusion of blood, 



grant's proposition. 373 

by asking of you the surrender of that portion of the 
Confederate States Army, kno"v\Ti as the Army of North- 
ern Virginia. 

V ery respectfully, your obedient servant, 

U. S. Gkant, 
Lieuten ant-General, Commanding Armies of the United States. 

To this Lee sent the following answer : 

Apeil 7, 1865. 

Geneeal : I have received your note of this date. 

Though not entirely of the opinion you express, of 
the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the 
Army of Northern Yirginia, I reciprocate your desire 
to avoid useless effusion of blood, and therefore, before 
considering your proposition, ask the terins you will 
offer, on condition of its surrender. 

R. E. Lee, General. 
To Lieutenant-General U. S. Geant, commanding Armies of the 
United States. 

Whether he believed there was any hope of 
escape, or whether he spoke of still resisting in 
order to get better terms, it is impossible to say. 
He may not have been aware that Sheridan was 
at that moment sweeping around his front, cutting 
off his escape to L}Tichburg ; for the day he sent 
this note was the one on which his army was 
marching through the thickets without much mo- 
lestation, except from some detachments of cav- 
alry that caused but little alarm. The next day, 
however, he had a clearer, more correct idea of 
his condition ; for the thunder of Sheridan's 
guns in front told him, in language too plain to 



374 LIFE OF GRANT. 

be misunderstood, that his case was hopeless. 
His army had dwindled down to less than ten 
thousand men, bearing arras — though there were 
nearly double that number who had thrown away 
their muskets, and become mere stragglers, scat- 
tered through the woods — and it was evident that 
those which still kept in the ranks must disband 
and scatter also, or surrender. 
The following was Grant's reply : 

April 8, 1865. 
To General E. E. Lee, Commanding C. S. A. 

General : Tour note of last evening, in reply to 
mine of same date, asking the conditions on which I 
wiE accept the surrender of the Army of Northern Yir- 
ginia, is just received. 

In reply, I would say that, peace leing my first desire^ 
there is hut one condition that I insist upon, viz. : 

That the men surrendered shall be disqualified for 
taking up arms against the Government of the United 
States until properly exchanged. 

I will meet you, or designate ofiicers to meet any 
officers you may name, for the same purpose, at any 
point agreeable to you, for the purpose of arranging 
definitely the terms upon which the surrender of the 
Army of Northern Virginia will be received. 
Yery respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

U. S. Grant, 
Lieutenant-General, Commanding Armies of the United States. 

Lee''s response was hardly as " frank " as he 
pretends, unless he refers to the mere form of sur- 
render, or to his oion personal surrender, for the 
"emergency" he speaks of, had certainly arisen. 



THE CORRESPONDENCE. 375 

The very liaste with which he answers Grant's 
note, and his anxiety to know what terms he will 
offer, shows that he feels it has. He says : 

April 8, 1865. 

General : I received, at a late liour, your note of 
to-day, in answer to mine of yesterday. 

I did not intend to propose the surrender of the Army 
of Northern Yirginia, but to ash the terms of your prop- 
osition. To be frank, I do not think the emergency 
has arisen to call for the surrender. 

But as the restoration of peace should he the sole ob- 
ject of all, I desire to know whether your proposals 
would tend to that end, 

I cannot, therefore, meet you with a view to surren- 
der the Army of Northern Yirginia ; but ^%far as your 
•proposition may affect the Confederate States forces un- 
der my command, and tend to the restoration of peace, 
I should be pleased to meet you at 10 a. m. to-morrow, 
on the old stage-road to Richmond, between the picket- 
lines of the two armies. 

Yery respectfully. 

Your obedient servant, 

R. E. Lee, General C. S. A. 

Grant, perfectly certain that Lee could not now 
escape, was umvilling that another brave soldier 
should be sacrificed through false pride or foolish 
obstinacy, and determined to lose no chance of 
bringing the matter to a peaceful termination, and 
hence replied : 

April 9, 1865. 
General R. E. Lee, Commanding C. S. A. 

General : Your note of yesterday is received. As I 
have no authority to treat on the subject of peace, the 
meeting proposed for 10 a. m. to-day could lead to no 



376 LIFE OF GRANT. 

good. 1 will state, however, Genera], that / am equal- 
ly mixious for peace with yourself j and the whole 
Korth entertain the same feeling. The terms upon 
which peace cam, he had are well understood. By the 
South laying down their arms, they will, hasten that 
most desirable event, save thousands of human lives, and 
hundreds of millions of property not yet destroyed. 

Sincerely hoping that all our difficulties may be set- 
tled without the loss of another life, I subscribe myself, 
Yery respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

U. S. Gkant, 
Lieutenant-General United States Army. 

The very day on which this was sent, Lee had 
resolved to make a last attempt to cut his way 
through Sheridan^s force. Gordon, to whom this 
perilous task was assigned, marched off with his 
thinned, disheartened division to execute it, when 
to his surprise he found that heavy masses of 
infantry supported the cavalry. Seeing at once 
that the attempt would only expose his men to 
butchery, he abandoned it, and sent a despatch 
to Lee announcing the fact. The latter in the 
mean time had ridden to the rear in hope of meet- 
ing Grant, but failing to do so, addressed him the 
following note : 

SuifDAT, April 9, 1865. 

General : I received your note of this morning, on 
the picket-line, whither I had come to meet you, and 
ascertain definitely what terms were embraced in your 
proposition of yesterday with reference to the surrender 
of this army. 

I now request an interview in accordance with the 



FLAG OF TRUCE. 377 

offer contained in your letter of yesterday for that pur- 
pose. Yery respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

R. E. Lee, General. 
To Lieutenant-General Grant, Commanding United States Armies. 

Grant, as soon as he received it, sent the follow- 
ing letters, which came just in time for a flag of 
truce to be raised in front of Gordon's troops, and 
prevent a charge of Sheridan's cavalry, which was 
already drawn up and waiting the sound of the 
bugle to dash down. 

Sunday, April 9, 1865. 
General R. E. Zee, Commanding G. 8. A. 

Tour note of this date is but this moment, 11 50 
A. M., received. 

In consequence of my having passed from the Rich- 
mond and Lynchburg road to the Farmville and Lynch- 
burg road, I am at this writing about four miles west 
of Walter's church, and will push forward to the front 
for the purpose of meeting you. 

Notice sent to me, on this road, where you wish the 
interview to take place, will m.eet me. 
Yery respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

XJ. S. Grant, Lieutenant-General. 



Appomattox Court House, April 9, 1865. 

General R. E. Lee, Commanding C. S. A. 

In accordance with the substance of my letters to 
you of the 8th inst., I propose to receive the surrender 
of the Army of Northern Yirginia on the following 
terms, to wit : 

Rolls of all the officers and men to be made in du- 



378 LIFE OF GRANT. 

plicate, one copy to be given to an officer designated by 
me, the other to be retained by such officers as you 
may designate. 

The officers to give their individual paroles not to 
take arms against the Government of the United States 
until properly exchanged, and each company or regi- 
mental commander sign a like parole for the men of 
their commands. 

The arms, artillery, and public property to be park- 
ed and stacked and turned over to the officers appointed 
by me to receive them. 

This will not embrace the side-arms of the officers, 
nor their private horses or baggage. 

This done, each officer an^ man will he allowed to 
return to their hornes^ not to be disturbed by United 
States authority so long as they observe their parole 
and the lavrs in force where they reside. 
Very respectfully, 

U. S. Grant, Lieutenant-General. 

These terms were at once accepted, in the fol- 
lowing short, direct reply : 

Headquarters, Aemt of Northern Virginia, ) 

April 9, 18G5. \ 

Lieutenant-General U. S. Grarit, Commanding U. S. A. 

General : I have received your letter of this date, 
containing the terms of surrender of the Army of 
Northern Virginia^ as proposed by you. As they are 
substantially the same as those expressed in your 
letter of the 8th inst., they are accepted. I will pro- 
ceed to designate the proper officers to carry the stipu- 
lations into effect. 

Very respectfully. 

Your obedient servant, 

R. E. Lee, General. 

Grant immediately rode forward to meet Lee. 



THE INTERVIEW 379 

The latter, at this time, was resting under an ap- 
ple-tree, with a single member of his staff beside 
him, when Col. Babcock, of Grant's staff, rode up 
and said, that if Gen. Lee remained where he was 
Gen. Grant would soon meet him, as he was 
coming along that road. Lee immediately di- 
rected Col. ]\Iarshall, his aid, to find a suitable 
place in which to receive Grant. The Colonel 
hailed the first inhabitant he saw, a Mr. McLean, 
and was directed by him to a vacant house near 
by, wdiich was partly in rains. He refused to re- 
ceive the Union commander in such a dilapidated 
building, when McLean offered his own residence, a 
farm-house a little way off. Here, in a plainly 
furnished sitting-room, Lee received Grant, who 
was accompanied by several staff" ofiicers and gener- 
als. The meeting was ft-ank, courteous, and without 
ceremony. Lee wore his sword, which Grant ob- 
serving, said, " I must apologize. General, for not 
wearing my sword — it had gone off with my bag- 
gage when I received your note." Lee bowed, 
and at once entered on the business that had 
brought them together, and asked Grant to state 
in writing, if he preferred it, the terms on which 
he would receive the surrender of the Army of 
Northern Virginia. Grant immediately sat down 
by a table, and with a common lead-pencil wrote 
the following note : 



380 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Appomattox Court House, April 9th, 1865. 
General R. E. Lee^ Commanding C. 8. A. : 

In accordance with the substance of my letter to 
you of the 8th inst., I propose to receive the surrender 
of the Army of Northern Virginia on the following 
terms, to wit : 

Rolls of all the officers and men to be made in du- 
plicate, one copy to be given to an officer designated by 
me, the other to. be retained by such officers as you may 
designate. 

the officers to give their individual parole not to 
take arms against the Government of the United States 
until properly exchanged ; and each company or regi- 
mental commander to sign a like parole for the men of 
their commands. 

The arms, artillery, and public property to be park- 
ed and stacked and turned over to the officers appoint- 
ed by me to receive them. This will not embrace the 
side-arms of the officers, nor their private horses or 
baggage. This done, each man will be allowed to 
return to their homes, not to be disturbed by the United 
States authority, so long as they observe their parole 
and the laws in force where they may reside. 
Yery respectfully, 

U. S. Grant, Lieut.-Gen. 

He handed this to Lee, who read it carefully, 
and then asked the construction to be put on 
" private horses," as most of the cavalrymen 
owned their horses. Grant replied, that they 
must be turned over to the Government. Lee 
acknowledged that it was just, when Grant 
said that he would instruct his officers to let 
those men who o^vned their horses retain them, 
as they would need them to till their farms. The 



THE SURRENDER. 381 

conqueror, in the very moment of his highest tri- 
umph, by a single sentence brings up a quiet 
picture of peace, and already begins to prepare 
for turning the " sword into a ploughshare." 

While this document was being copied, which 
took some time, as there was but one inkstand in 
the house, Grant and Lee conversed familiarly, 
each inquiring about old army friends. In casu- 
ally alluding to the business before them, Lee said 
that he had two or three thousand Federal priso- 
ners on hand, and he was afraid he had not 
rations to supply them. Sheridan, who was 
present, immediately replied : "I have rations for 
twenty-five thousand men." 

When Grant's paper was copied, Lee directed 
Col. Marshall to write a reply, the substance of 
which he gave him. The latter began with, " I 
have the honor to reply to your communication 
of, &c." Lee scratched all this out, and wrote 
simply and soldier-like : " General, I have receiv- 
ed your letter of this date, containing the terms 
of surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia as 
proposed by you. As they are substantially the 
same as those expressed in your letter of the 8th 
inst., they are accepted. I will proceed to desig- 
nate the proper officers to carry the stipulations 
into effect." 

Thus ended the interview of that memorable 
Sabbath — Palm Sunday — between those two 



382 LIFE OF GRANT 

great actors in the frightful drama that had 
just closed. On the one side was the Virginia 
gentleman, with the courtly bearing of the old 
school, and standing over six feet high — head and 
shoulders above all around him. On the other, 
the Western representative man — short, thick -set, 
and broad-shouldered, self-possessed and natural as 
in his own camp. There was no theatrical display 
or language from beginning to end. Simple, un- 
assuming, straight-forward and manly, they both 
went through the eventful interview, so painful to 
one, in a manner that became them. The change 
that comes over Grant in the moment of victory is 
very marked. While pressing towards it, he is 
relentless as fate, and blow follows blow with un- 
paralleled fierceness. But when it is achieved all 
the warrior suddenly disappears, and you see only 
a kind-hearted, simple, unassuming man, more 
intent on sparing the feelings of his conquered foes 
than occupied with his own triumphs. The inter- 
view being over, Lee mounted his horse and rode 
thoughtfully back to his headquarters. The deed 
was irrevocably done — the Confederacy, which 
had put forth such superhuman efforts for the last 
few years, was dead forever — the mighty structure 
lay in ruins, and the land was strewed with its 
wreck. 

Grant, as he rode away, felt that his work was 
also done — but it was a work of accomplishment. 



THE president's DREAM. 383 

not of destruction — of glory enduring, not of dis- 
grace and sorrow. 

Three days after, the Army of Northern Virginia 
had its last parade, and marched by divisions 
to a spot near the Court House, and there silently 
stacked their arms, took off their accoutrements, 
and piled together their flags. About 25,000 
men, more than half unarmed, all that were left of 
Lee's great army, then turned towards their ruined, 
wasted homes. Grant, with that true magnanim- 
ity and delicacy that have always characterized 
him, was not present at the final surrender. 
Prompted by the same spirit, he never made a 
formal entry into the hostile capital, as other con- 
querers would have done. Avoidmg all pomp 
and show, he was content with having finished 
the work assigned him. Never did a warrior in 
the height of triumph wear honors so meekly. 

Grant now hastened to Washington, and on the 
14th, the day on which the President was assassi- 
nated, attended a cabinet meeting. During a 
pause in the discussions, the President turned to 
him and asked if he had heard from Gen. Sher- 
man. Grant replied that he had not, but expect- 
ed every hour to hear that Johnston had surren- 
dered to him. "Well," said Mr. Lincoln, "you 
will hear very soon now." "Why do you think 
so ? " asked Grant. " Because," said he, " I had 
a dream last night, and ever since the war began 



384 LIFE OF GRANT. 

I have invariably had the same dream before any 
important military event occurred. I dreamed 
that I saw a ship sailing very rapidly, and I am 
sure it portends some important national event." 

The very next day, Johnston, having learned 
the fate of Lee, proposed an armistice to Sher- 
man, offering, on certain conditions, to surrender. 
The Government disapproving of both, sent Grant 
down to take control of matters, who, offering 
substantially the same terms granted to Lee, the 
army was surrendered. During this very week 
Mobile fell, and now almost as rapidly as messa- 
ges could be transmitted the rebel forces in every 
section of the country laid down their arms. 

The army, its great work being done, now took 
its joyful, triumphant march for home. But be- 
fore those brave troops melted away into the com- 
mon mass of citizens again, it was determined 
that they should once more pass in review before 
their great leaders, in the capital of the country. 
It was a noble spectacle, as with the President, 
and cabinet, and foreign ministers around him. 
Grant looked do^\Ti on those bronzed veterans 
who had moved at his bidding, and been the in- 
struments to execute his will, as he pressed the 
hosts of rebellion back, and rescued the Bepublic 
from destruction. For two days the mighty army 
marched past him, and his eye kindled as the old 
banners that had waved amid the storm of Don- 



THE GRAND REVIEW. 385 

elson, Sliiloh, and Vicksburg, and Missionary 
Ridge, dipped proudly to him. Great and touch- 
ing memories ckistered around them, for they 
marked the steps of the wondrous path he had 
trod for the last four years. Soldiers and officers 
had become endeared to him by a common toil, 
a common danger, and a mutual triumph. They 
had never failed him in the hour of deadly peril. 
Brave hearts were they all, who had stood shoul- 
der to shoulder mth him on many a hard-fouoht 

o 

field. On every drooping banner his eye rested 
wath pride, for not one had been disgraced — on 
the contrary, they were covered all over with 
noble inscriptions, the mere mention of which, 
was a history of their gallant deeds. Although 
the air was tremulous with triumphant music, and 
shouts to the chief rocked the heavens, yet amid 
all this adulation and excitement, a sad and 
mournful feeling filled his heart, as the swiftly- 
marching columns disappeared in the distance, 
for they were parting forever. But over all, 
swelled emotions of joy, that the Union was saved 
-^the country rescued from ruin, and a happy, 
united people would ere long forget the past, in 
the enjoyment of peace and prosperity. 

17 



CHAPTER XXV. 

Grant since the War — Keeps clear of Politics — His freedom from 
animosity to the South — His calm and dispassionate judgment 
— Interferes in behalf of Lee — Opposed to the distinctions made 
in the Amnesty Proclamation between Officers of ditferent 
Rank — Also to that based on Property — Opposed to Military 
Government — Intercedes for Rebels asking for Pardon— The 
Presidential Tour — His Reception at the Sanitary Fair in Chi- 
cago — A thrilling spectacle — "Welcome at Galena — Prefers 
"Work to Show — Sent South to examine into its Condition — 
Remonstrates against the Removal of Sheridan- -Appointed 
Secretary of "War ad interim — Discharges the Duties of the 
Office with signal Ability — Ilis Reticence on Political Questions 
— His Platform of Principles. 

The life of Grant since the war, furnishes but 
little exciting, though important material for the 
biographer. Unobtrusive in peace as he was 
modest in Avar, he has avoided mixing in the po- 
litical contests of the day, steadily refusing to give 
the sanction of his great name to any mere party 
measure. 

He has shown the same well-balanced charac- 
ter amid the fierce and warring passions of men 
that he did in the strife and tumult of battle. 
He shared with President Lincoln in that freedom 
from bitter animosity to the South, for the untold 
evils it had brought on the country, which sway- 
ed the feelings, and controlled the actions of so 



IT IS JUSTICE. 387 

man}^, in and out of power. Not that lie felt less 
the fearful crime that had been committed, or was 
less shocked at its results, but that he was too 
great and noble to live in the foul atmosphere of 
revenge and hate, and was too far-seeing a states- 
man, and too pure a patriot, not to deprecate con- 
tinued animosity and wider separation. He felt 
that if South and North were ever ao;ain to form 
a Union, a union in reality and not in name, by- 
gones must be by-gones, so far as the common 
safety and justice Avould permit. Had President 
Lincoln lived, there is no doubt but that they 
would have moved in perfect harmony and accord 
in the work of reconstruction. But the trao-ical 

o 

death of the President turned the kind feelinsrs of 
too many in the North into gall and wormwood ; 
for in their grief and passion they forgot to be 
just, and the act of one madman was construed 
as the act of the entire South. Grant, thouo;h no 
one was more shocked and grieved than he, 
showed that superiority to surrounding influ- 
ences that made him always so calm and self- 
poised in the heat of conflict — even when every 
thing was tossing in wreck and ruin around him. 
In this respect he is one of the most remarkable 
men in history. Though possessing a kind heart, 
the contagion of sympathy, or passion, like the 
panic of officers and men in battle, never warps his 
clear judgment or prevents his seeing the right. 



388 LIFE OF GRANt 

When under the mfluence of the excited state 
of feeling arising out of the horrible tragedy, an 
indictment of treason was found against Lee, like a 
true soldier, who will no sooner allow his honor than 
his sword to be tarnished, he promptly interposed, 
saying, that it was contrary to the express stipula- 
tions of the surrender at Appomattox Court-House, 
which declared that none of those who had laid 
down their arms were to be molested so lonjr as 
their conduct was peaceable and orderly. So when 
the President consulted him on his amnesty proc- 
lamation. Grant was entirely opposed to that pro- 
vision which excluded from its benefits all officers 
from a brigadier-general up. He said that those, 
of whatever grade, who had belonged to the regu- 
lar army, and hence been educated by the General 
Government, should be excluded ; but he could see 
neither the propriety nor justice of excluding a vol- 
unteer, who by his bravery and talents had risen 
to the rank of general, and yet pardoning one 
who, though he tried, failed to get higher than a 
major or colonel. Every man of common sense 
will acknowledoje that he was risrht. He was also 
opposed to the property distinction, by which all 
persons worth over twenty thousand dollars were 
deprived of the benefits of the amnesty. It could 
not but seem strange, that, of two neighbors living 
side by side, and who had been equally active in 
the rebellion, one worth but fifteen thousand dol- 



OPPOSED TO MILITARY GOVERNMENT. 389 

lars should be pardoned, and the other, because 
he happened to possess five thousand more, should 
not be. But it seemed proper that there should be 
a limit somewhere, and as the same objection 
would hold good wherever it was placed, he after- 
wards changed his mind, and approved of it. 

The President consulted him much respecting the 
proper course to pursue towards the rebel States, 
but he steadily refused to be mixed up in civil 
matters — he simply urged, and urged strenuously, 
that some kind of government should be adopted 
at once. As a military commander, it would 
have been natural for him to suppose that milita- 
ry rule would be better until the chaotic state of 
affairs should partially cease. But like Washing- 
ton, he believes that almost any government is bet- 
ter than a military despotism — that even great dis- 
orders are preferable to it. His views on this point 
show him to be more of a statesman than those 
who have exercised the civil power. 

The well-knoA\ni magnanimity of his character 
caused many prominent rebels, especially officers 
excluded by the amnesty proclamation, to apply 
to him to obtain their pardon ; and when the case 
seemed a proper one for the Executive clemency, 
he never refused. 

As this fact came out on his examination before 
the impeachment committee of Congress, many 
at first thought he had been guilty of too great 



390 LIFE OF GRANT. 

leniency ; but as eacli case was investigated, the 
simple statement of facts was all the defence 
necessary. He had not made a single mistake 
that even his opponents could use ; while the 
spirit he exhibited, caused many of his enemies 
at the South to change their feelings toward him. 
The uniform correctness of his judgment under 
all circumstances, is one of the most remarkable 
traits in his character. 

The reception he met with, as he moved from 
point to point in the country, showed the un- 
bounded love felt for him by all classes. At New 
York, tens of thousands crowded the City Hall 
to shake hands with him ; while he stood amid 
the rush and crowd, quietly smoking his cigar, 
just as he had been accustomed to do under the 
blaze of batteries and amid the tossing ranks of 
war. At Boston, determined efforts were made 
to get a speech out of him, but in vain. The 
same reticence and unobtrusive manner character- 
ized him throughout the Presidential tour across 
the country, at the time of the inauguration of 
the monument to Douglas in Illinois. He lived 
and moved in a political atmosphere, and it 
seemed impossible that a man could talk at all, 
unless he expressed his opinion on politics; but 
not a word escaped him. Once, some persons 
tried to entrap him, when the sudden waking-up 
of the lion taught them that impassibility was 



EECEPTION AT CHICAGO. 391 

not always stolidity. He Avas a much greater 
personage than the President ; and the immense 
crowds that gathered on the way to welcome the 
distinguished party, gave their longest, loudest 
cheers to Grant. 

But perhaps the most imposing, if not the most 
enthusiastic reception he ever received, was at the 
last Sanitary Fair, held in Chicago. The expecta- 
tion of seeing him and Sherman, and other distin- 
guished officers, had brought an immense crowd to- 
gether; so that "Union Hall" was packed with ten 
thousand people, vdien, heralded by a salute of a 
hundred cannon, and escorted by General Hooker, 
the honorary president of the fair, and other dis- 
tinguished men, he entered tlie door-way. The 
moment he appeared, a choir selected for the pur- 
pose, struck up "The Red, White, and Blue." 
But the pealing melody had hardly commenced 
when it was di'owned, lost, in the enthusiastic, 
Avild hurrahs that shook the building — cheer fol- 
lowing cheer, like successive billows ; while long 
lines of waving handkerchiefs and bright eyes, 
gleamed above the dark mass, like sunlight on the 
waves. As the tumult subsided, Grant stepped 
forward, but before he could open his lips the 
building again shook with the thunders of ap- 
plause. He gazed calmly on the excited, mighty 
multitude, and as soon as there came a lull in the 
storm, said : " Ladies and gentlemen, as I never 



392 LIFE OF GRANT. 

make a speech myself, I will ask Governor Yates 
to return the thanks I should fail to express." 
Governor Yates then came forward, and closed a 
short, exciting address with, " and, fellow-citizens, 
I am here to-day to say that the proudest reflec- 
tion that thrills the heart of this brave soldier and 
General, is, that we have gloriously triumphed. 
That our nation is preserved, that our govern- 
ment has been maintained, and that we have our 
free institutions for us and our posterity forever." 

The citizens of Galena, his place of residence 
before the war, received him under triumphal 
arches. 

During the war, a person on one occasion re- 
marked to him that his name had been mentioned 
in connection with the presidency. He laugh- 
ingly replied, that if he ever run for an office, he 
hoped it would be for mayor of Galena, so that 
he might have a sidewalk built from his house 
to the railroad depot. This the citizens had 
built ; and now over one of the green arches were 
the words, " General, the sidewalk is built." 

Everywhere the same enthusiastic welcome at- 
tested how deeply he had implanted himself in 
the affections of the people. 

Though grateful for these spontaneous, unstint- 
ed expressions of love and respect, yet all jDub- 
lic ovations wearied him, and he was glad to (ret 
back to his legitimate work — reducing the army, 



SECRETARY OF WAR. 393 

and distributing the various portions of it as the 
public exigencies required. 

Such conflicting reports were circulated respect- 
ing the condition of the South, that the President 
sent him to inquire into it. He did so, and his 
report showed that superiority to outside influ- 
ences, and calm, dispassionate, just judgment that 
has ever distinguished him from other men. 

True to the man who had so nobly stood by 
him during the war, when the President removed 
Sheridan from command in New Orleans, he 
remonstrated ao;ainst it. 

He had shown himself a great general, and he 
was at length to exhibit those rare executive and 
administrative faculties which are not alwa^^s com- 
bined wdth military ability. 

Last year, 1867, the President removed Mr. 
Stanton, Secretary of War, and put Grant as Sec- 
retary ad interim in his place. 

Though Stanton, when he confined himself to 
the special, appropriate duties of his department, 
was generally conceded to be one of the ablest 
Secretaries of War we ever had, yet Grant, though 
a novice, and hurried without previous prepara- 
ration into the place, excelled him in every partic- 
ular. Although as General-in-Chief he had all the 
departments under his charge, some of which, 
especially the Southern, caused him much anxiety 
and trouble, yet the administration of the oflice 



394 LIFE OF GRANT. 

Avas complete and perfect. Nor was this all — he 
immediately entered on the work of retrenchment. 
One would think, burdened as he was with the 
two-fold duties of the office and those belonging 
to him as General, and knoAving, too, that his 
occupation of it was only transient, that he would 
have been quite content to have kept things going 
on in their old channels. But instead of this, his 
first act was to seize the pruning-knife, and not 
iTisldy, but wisely, he cut down the expenses of 
the department millions of dollars. 

His report, at the opening of Congress, gives a 
clear, compact statement of the military situation, 
unburdened with theories and recommendations 
of his own. Stating facts so that Congress could 
act intelligently, was better than any mere per- 
sonal opinion. Though wishing to reduce the 
expenses of the Government as much as pos- 
sible, he would not even recommend the discon- 
tinuance of the Freedmen s Bureau. Although 
the expenditure had been over $3,000,000, yet he 
says : " No recommendation is made at the 
present time respecting the continuance or discon- 
tinuance of this Bureau. During the session of 
Congress, facts may develop themselves requiring 
special legislation in the premises, when the 
necessary recommendations may be made." 

In this single sentence, one can see the rea- 
son for his strange reticence on political ques- 



HIS RETICENCE. 



tions. ' ' Facts may develop themselves,'''' is the key to 
this silence that has offended so many. Senator 
Wade once said that he tried to get his political 
views, but when he talked politics Grant talked 
Jwrse. The leaders of both parties for a long while 
denounced or sneered at this want of an opinion, or 
fear of expressing it, as they termed it. No man, 
they said, was fit to be President who had not 
fixed, decided opinions. In ordinary times one 
naturally has fixed opinions on matters that divide 
parties, but in the chaotic state of the South no 
man could tell what new phase it would present, 
requiring consequently a corresponding change in 
measures. Grant, however, was unmoved either by 
expostulations, entreaties, or threats. He never in 
war laid down a campaign in all its details ; certain 
outlines were fixed, but he changed his plans and 
marches and battles as circumstances changed ; and 
he wants to be left free to act correspondingly in 
civil matters. He has not sought the nomination 
for the Presidency — has not even said he would 
accept it if tendered him. He has said distinctly 
that he did not wish to be President, and in that 
he shows his wisdom ; for that high office is not 
only beset with untold annoyances, but is of 
short duration, while the position he holds as 
Lieutenant-General is far more desirable in itself, 
and lasts for a lifetime. Pie has said more- 
over, if he should accept the office, it would 



396 LIFE OF GllANT. 

be from the same motive that prompted him 
to accept command in the army — to serve his 
comitry. The position, high or low, is of second- 
ary consequence — he must see first how he can 
be of benefit to the country in occupying it. 
And we believe that, if any political party at- 
tempts to hamper him with platforms of mere 
measures that will prevent his acting as he 
shall deem the public interest requires, he will 
refuse to be President. If a few leaders expect 
him to be a mere machine, the wires of which 
they pull, they have grievously misunderstood 
his character. His main views he never con- 
ceals. His platform is broad as his char- 
acter. The restoration of the Union to peace 
and prosperity is its foundation. How pitiful 
do mere factions appear when contrasted with 
this single-hearted, lofty patriotism. To the care- 
ful reader of history, no truth is plainer than that 
factions can never bring the country out of its pre- 
sent chaotic, perilous condition. If the people 
cannot rise to the high level that Gen. Grant 
occupies, and from which he will not be forced by 
threats or flatteries, then we must add our name 
to the long, sad roll of Governments that have 
fallen before contending factions. 

We are not speakmg of Gen. Grant politically, 
but historically — defending him from the attacks 
that have been made on him. As a man, whether 



HIS COURSE RIGHT. 397 

President or not, we assert that his course is rijxht, 
his example noble, and one that ought to be fol- 
lowed. 

The people of a country may have their preju- 
dices or passions played upon by unscrupulous 
political leaders, till their judgments are Avarped, 
and misguided action follows. But the hour of 
disenthrahnent will surely come, and the true, un- 
selfish patriot will receive the eulogies of those 
who traduced him. The laurels he deserved in life, 
sometimes, alas, fall only on his grave, or the 
grave of the republic ; yet, Time, in the end, vin 
dicates the right. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

Grant's Fi-eedotn from Party prejudice — Vacates the "War Office — 
Correspondence with the President — Statements of the Mem- 
bers of the Cabinet — Contradictory Statements — Explanation 
of the discrepancy — His course approved — Refuses to sanction 
Hancock's order at New Orleans — His Character — His Courage 
— PoA^r of Concentration — Tenacity — Knowledge of Detail — 
On the Picket Line — Anecdote of him — Skill in handling Large 
Armies — Lincoln's estimate of his Character— McPherson's. 

Amid the bitter feeling of party that lias char- 
acterized Congress and distracted the country for 
the last three years, it seemed impossible that 
Grant could draw up a report of the condition 
and wants of the South, or afterwards act as Sec- 
retary of War, without having abuse from one side 
or the other heaped upon him. But so free was 
he from all mere party bias himself, so sincere and 
apparent his desire for truth, and so simple and 
straightforward his whole conduct, that even party 
rancor was compelled to silence. This fact alone 
is the highest encomium on his integrity and 
ability that can be pronounced. 

But that such a prominent figure as he, could 
forever remain in that vortex of passion and party 
hate — Washington — where plots and counterplots, 
and threats, and flatteries, and cunning, and false- 



VACATES HIS OFFICE. 399 

hood have full scope, without in some way being 
drawn into it, was impossible. Filling the office 
of Secretary of War with marked abiUty and in- 
tegrity, it turned out that he Was not put there 
for those qualities, but to take the cross-fire of the 
President and Senate, or, in other words, be a 
rock on which both should hammer while settling 

o 

their personal quarrel. 

But when the Senate, on its assembling, refused 
to sanction the removal of Stanton, Grant quietly 
vacated the office. This was the signal of a storm. 
It was stated that Grant had agreed not to give 
up the office, but compel Stanton to resort to legal 
measures to get it, and thus compel the Tenure of 
Office bill to be taken to the Supreme Court, 
where its constitutionality could be decided. The 
papers teemed with rumors and assertions affect- 
ing, as Grant said, "his personal honor," and a 
correspondence ensued between him and the Pres- 
ident, in which they stand diametrically oj^posite 
in regard to certain facts that took place in a Cab- 
inet meeting where the question of Stanton's rein- 
statement by the Senate was discussed. 

The entire correspondence is too long to be in- 
serted here. The following, however, is substan- 
tially the version of the affair as given by Grant : 

" When the question came up as to what coiu'se 
should be pursued in case the Senate did not con- 
cur in the suspension of Stanton, Grant replied 



400 LIFE OF GRANT. 

that he thought Mr. Stanton would have to ap- 
peal to the courts to reinstate him ; adding, how- 
ever, that should he change his views on this 
point he would inform the President. Subse- 
quently, after closely examining the terms of the 
Tenure of Office bUl, he came to the conclusion 
that he could not, without violating the law, re- 
fuse to vacate the office of Secretary of War the 
moment Mr. Stanton was reinstated by the Sen- 
ate, even though the President should, which he 
did not do, order him to remain. He therefore 
notified the President of the decision to which he 
had come on this point. The President urged in 
reply that, as Mr. Stanton had been suspended, 
and Gen. Grant appointed under authority grant- 
ed by the Constitution, and not under any Act of 
Congress, Grant could not be governed by the 
Act. Grant rejoined that the law, whether con- 
stitutional or not, was binding upon him until set 
aside by the projDcr tribunal. So matters stood 
for some days, until Mr. Stanton, with whom 
Gen. Grant had held no communication, reassum- 
ed the duties of his office, when Grant, who no 
longer considered himself to be Secretary of War, 
was requested by the President to attend a Cab- 
inet meeting on the 14th of January." 

At this meeting the President on his part affirms 
that Grant acknowledged "that he had agreed 
either to hold on to the post until the courts 



THE CONFLICT WITH THE PRESIDENT. 401 

otherwise decided, or to resign before the Senate 
had taken action ; " that after the promise was 
given, he agreed to another conference, but did 
not attend ; that the members of the Cabinet 
coincided with him in his views, &c. 

Grant, in reply, denies the correctness of this 
statement of the matter in toto. Astonished at 
the explicit charges of the President, he adds : 
" You know that we parted on Saturday, the 11th 
ult., without any promise on my part, either ex- 
press or implied, that I would hold on to the 
office of Secretary of War ad inte^^im against the 
action of the Senate ; or, declining to do so my- 
self, would surrender it to you before such action 
was had ; or that I would see you at any fixed 
time on the subject.'" After going on to say that 
for him to have pursued any other course than the 
one he did, would have been in violation of law, 
and subjected him to fine and perhaps imprison- 
ment, he concludes: "When my honor as a sol- 
dier and integrity as a man have been so violently 
assailed, pardon me for saying that I can but 
regard this whole matter, from beginning to end, 
as an attempt to involve me in the resistance of 
law, for which you hesitated to assume the 
responsibility, and thus to destroy my charac- 
ter before the country. I am, in a measure, con- 
firmed in this conclusion by your recent orders 
directing me to disobey orders from the Sec- 



402 LIFE OF GRANT. 

retar}' of War, my superior and your subor- 
dinate." 

To meet this direct denial of Grant, the Pres- 
ident then gave the versions of the several members 
of the Cabinet with regard to this arrangement 
between Grant and himself. Welles, McCuUoch, 
and Randall, say that in all " important particu- 
lars, the President's statement accords with their 
recollection of the conversation." Mr. Browning 
gives a more lengthy statement, and says dis- 
tinctly, that the last interview closed with the 
understanding between Grant and the President, 
that no definite conchi-sion had been reached ; but 
that they would have another conference, which, 
however, never did take place. He also makes 
the following remarkable admission : "I did not 
understand General Grant as denying nor as ad- 
mitting these statements [of the President as to 
what had previously passed between them] in the 
form aiid full extent to which the President made 
them. His admission was rather indirect and 
circumstantial, though I did not understand it to 
be an evasive one." Mr. Seward states, that at this 
meeting Grant remarked, by way of explanation 
for his not attending the proposed conference : "I 
was engaged on Sunday, the 12th, with General 
Sherman, and also on Monday, in regard to the 
War Department matter, with a hope, though he 
did not say with an effort, to procure an amicable 



THE EXPLANATION. 403 

settlement of tlie affair of Mr. Stanton ; and he 
still hoped that it would be brought about." 

Enough of this is given to show the points at 
issue between the President and Grant, and the 
character of the testimony by which the former 
sustains his statements. This testimony, it seems, 
is contradictory. Mr. Browning, though more cir- 
cumstantial and detailed than the others, does not 
corroborate the President in his strong, explicit 
assertions respecting the promise made by Grant. 
This one fact, it seems to us, furnishes the key to the 
solution of the whole discrepancy. It exhibits, it 
seems to us, a blind partisan spirit rather than a 
calm judgment, or proper respect, for either party 
to assert, as so many of the adherents of each do, 
that one or the other is guilty of a direct falsehood. 
It is evident, from the want of emphatic direct testi- 
mon}^, such as a court of law would demand (the 
whole being a sort of " general recollection "), as 
well as from the fact that they "recollect" on 
some vital points differently, and different from 
the President, that the whole mal-ter was nothino- 
more than a general understanding on both sides. 
Whether Johnson hesitated to press an explicit 
agreement, lest Grant's suspicions should be 
aroused and he refuse point blank to take any 
part in the transaction at all, or the latter declined 
to bring the matter to the same definite conclu- 
sion from disinclination to come in direct conflict 



404 LIFE OF GRANT. 

with his commander-in-chief, is of little conse- 
quence. Let the causes be what they may, the 
fact is evident from the testimony and the cor- 
respondence, that while the "understanding" on 
either side might have been this or that, there 
was no actual agreement entered into. Now 
any impartial man who is at all acquainted with 
human nature, knows how easily two parties, each 
looking at things from his own stand-point, can 
come to diametrically opposite conclusions re- 
specting how much the other was compromised 
in a general conversation. Any business man 
understands this. But if great disappointment 
succeeds on one side, this general understanding 
always becomes downright assertion. 

The President was bitterly disappointed, and 
hence felt keenly, and, regretting that he had not 
acted more promptly and definitely, naturally 
concluded that Grant had deceived him. 

But, independent of all this, every just man 
must admit, without argument, that one single 
act, utterly at variance with the whole life and 
character of a man, can never stand against 
him Y^ithout the strongest and most positive 
and impregnable testimony. Now, if there is 
one thing that distinguishes Grant above all other 
men, it is that he is incapable of low cunning, 
underhand plotting, hypocrisy, and deceit. He 
has never been charged witii or even suspected of 



JUSTIFIED. 405 

these ; and to say that such loose testimony as that 
furnished by the Cabinet makes him such a char- 
acter in this solitary case, is neither just nor hon- 
orable. Besides, there is a single fact that seems to 
be entirely overlooked, which completely disproves 
the charge. All agree that he endeavored to get 
Sherman to help him prevail on Stanton to resign, 
and thus relieve the President and the country of 
the shameful, humiliating affair. This does not look 
like low conspiracy against the President, but the 
act of a friend of all, and of the country. Judging 
Stanton by himself, he thought there was little 
doubt that as soon as he had won the victory over 
the President, his own delicacy and regard for the 
peace of the country would prompt him to resign. 
That he was mistaken, does not affect the purity of 
his motives. The act surely shows that he was not 
guilty of hypocrisy, but wanted to adjust the mat- 
ter peaceably and to the satisfaction of all parties. 

At all events he did right. He would have been 
untrue to himself had he allowed the President 
to make a cat's-paw of him — involve him in law- 
suits, and subject him perhaps to imprisonment, 
and doubtless to odious legislation. His duty 
was to keep aloof from such strifes as were here 
intended to be forced upon him. 

Another cause of complaint against Grant has 
been, that he refused to sustain Hancock, whom 
the President put over the military department 



406 LIFE OF GRANT. 

of Louisiana, in place of Sheridan. That Han- 
cock is an upright man, and too elevated in sen- 
timent and principle to let partisanship affect his 
action, no one who knows him will doubt. It is 
equally plain that his action which Grant refused 
to approve, was intended to serve the public wel- 
fare; but it nevertheless was the exercise of 
military over the civil authority, which Grant 
always condemned, unless there was absolute 
necessitv in the case. Moreover, Hancock him- 
self had taken this ground when he assumed com- 
mand of the department, and been extolled by the 
enemies of Grant for it. Yet these very persons, 
who had declaimed loudest against the military 
despotism exercised over the South, complained 
of Grant for refusing to sanction it. The whole 
matter is comprised in the following statement of 
Grant, and at the same time reveals the spirit 
that animated him. He says : " The office of Re- 
corder of the City of New Orleans is elective by 
the people ; but in case of a vacancy it is made 
the duty by law of the Boards of Aldermen and 
Assistant Aldermen, in joint meeting, to elect 
viva voce a person to fill the vacancy. The office 
of Recorder of the Second District of New Or- 
leans was, by the Supreme Court of Louisiana, 
adjudged vacant ; and the City of New Orleans 
was ordered to be notified to proceed according to 
law to elect a Recorder for said district, which 



I 

L 



HIS LETTER TO HANCOCK. 407 

judgment was made final January 20, 1868. In 
pursuance of this order of the Court, the Board 
of Aldermen and Assistant Aldermen met in joint 
session on the 4th of February, 1868, to elect a 
Recorder for said Second District. At this ses- 
sion was read a communication written by Capt. 
Chandlee, Assistant Secretary of Civil Affairs, 
and purporting to be by your direction, inviting 
attention to the first and second sections of the 
Supplementary Reconstruction Act of Congress, 
passed July 19, 1867, and to paragraph two. 
Special Order No. 7, from Headquarters Fifth 
Military District, dated March 28, 1867. At the 
date of this communication, namely, January 25, 
1868, and before any action of either branch of 
the Council had been had relative to the election 
therein referred to, you were absent from the City 
of New Orleans, in the State of Texas. This 
communication did not in terms forbid the elec- 
tion ; neither did the sections of the Act to which 
it referred, except as it might be inferred from the 
second section, wherein the District Commander 
is empowered, under certain restrictions, to fill 
vacancies occasioned by death, resignation, or 
otherwise. Section nine of this Act, as well as 
the original Reconstruction Act of March 2, 1867, 
recognizes the right of the State and nuniicipal 
authorities to appoint and elect officers undei* cer- 
tain restrictions and limitations : but the exercise 



408 LIFE OF GRANT. 

of this right is subject to the authority of the Dis- 
trict Commander. Subsequent to the issuing of 
Special Order No. 7, referred to, and durmg the 
administration of Gens. Sheridan and Mower, the 
City Council of New Orleans did in some cases 
fill vacancies in corporation ofiices under the pro- 
visions of section 24 of the city charter of New 
Orleans in the same manner as is provided for 
filling the vacancy in the office of Recorder, and 
after you assumed command the office of City At- 
torney was filled under the same authority and in 
the same manner. No exception was taken in 
any case by any of the District Commanders to 
such action. On assuming command of the dis- 
trict, you announced m General Order No. 40, of 
November 29, 1867, that it was your purpose to 
preserve peace and quiet in your command, and 
that as a means to this great end you regarded 
the maintenance of the civil authorities in the 
faithful execution of the laws as the most efficient 
under existing circumstances ; also, that when the 
civil authorities are ready and willing to perform 
their duties the military power should cease to 
lead, and the civil administration resume its 
natural and rightful dominion. Under this state- 
ment of facts the City Council of New Orleans 
might reasonably have presumed it to be their 
right and duty, especially under the order of the 
Court, and your Order No. 40, to fill the vacancy 



RIGHT VIEWS. 409 

in tlie office of Recorder, as it appears they did 
from your report of tins case, dated February 15, 
1868. Ttie same facts, too, in connection with 
the printed report of their proceedings, embraced 
in your report of February 15, preclude the pre- 
sumption of any intended contempt of the military 
authority by the members of the City Council." 

Although in very many cases it would evidently 
be for the best for a one-man power to step in and 
prevent the wrong contemplated by officers who 
had been elected by the people; yet Grant be- 
lieves that in a republican government there is 
but one course to pursue — let the people remedy 
their own wrongs by removing those who have 
abused their confidence. Indeed this is the only 
course that can be pursued in a republic — any 
other is despotism. 

In the work now completed we have followed 
General Grant from his early boyhood — when, the 
son of a poor tanner, he commenced life in the 
West — to the present time, when he stands at the 
head of our armies, and is the most prominent 
candidate mentioned in connection with the Pres- 
idency. That life which has embraced so many 
and various scenes and fortunes, is singularly 
blameless, and should it pass on into the vortex 
of partisan hate and be subjected to the trying 
tests of a heated political contest, w^ill still remain 
untarnished. 

18 



410 LIFE OF grant: 

HIS CHARACTER. 

We think that the main points of his character 
are clearly revealed by his own acts. 

His courage is undoubted, though it is not of 
that fiery, chivalric kind which dazzles the public 
eye. He is not borne up in action by the enthu- 
siasm and pride of the warrior ; but apparently 
unconscious of danger, makes battle a business, 
which is to be performed with a clear head and 
steady nerves. His coolness in deadly peril is 
wonderful. What we once said of Marshal Ney 
applies forcibly to him. " In battle he could liter- 
ally shut up his mind to the one object he had in 
view. The overthrow of the enemy absorbed 
every thought within him, and he had none to 
give to danger or death. Where he placed his 
mind he held it, and not all the uproar and con- 
fusion of battle could divert it. He would not 
allow himself to see any thing else than the one 
object in view, and hence was almost as insen- 
sible to the dangers around him as a deaf and 
dumb and blind man would be. He liimself once 
expressed the true secret of his calmness, when, 
after one of those exhibitions of composure amid 
the most horrid carnage, an officer asked him if 
he never felt fear, he replied : ' I never had time.' 
This was another way of saying, that fear and 
danger had nothing to do with the object before 



RESEMBLES NEY. 411 

him, and, therefore, he would not suffer his mind 
to rest on them for a single moment." This won- 
derful power of concentrating all his faculties on 
a given point, is strikingly characteristic of Grant. 
In tenacity of will, also, he is like Ney, who ivould 
not he beaten; and in the last extremity rallied 
like a dying man for a final blow, and then plant- 
ed it Avhere the clearest practical wisdom indi- 
cated. Like Ney, too, he is naturally of a slug- 
gish, indolent nature, which requires great crises 
to thoroughly arouse. 

We cannot better express our views of this last 
peculiarity of Grant, than by repeating what we 
once before said of him. There are some men in 
this world possessing immense mental power, who 
yet, from mere inertness, pass through life with 
poor success. Lighter natures outstrip them in 
the race for wealth or position, and the strength 
they really possess is never known, because it has 
never been called out. It never is called out by 
ordinary events. They were made for great emer- 
gencies, and if these do not arise, they seem almost 
made in vain ; at least these extraordinary powers 
appear to be given them in vain. Grant is one 
of these. He is like a great wheel, on which mere 
rills of water may drop forever without moving 
it, or if they succeed in disturbing its equilibiium, 
only make it accomplish a partial revolution. It 
needs an immense body of water to make it roll, 



412 LIFE OF GEANT. 

and then it revolves with a power and majesty 
that awes the beholder. No slight obstructions 
then can arrest its mighty sweep. Acquiring mo- 
mentum with each revolution, it crushes to atoms 
every thing thrust before it to check its motion. 

One would naturally think that such a charac- 
ter would pay but little attention to mere detail, 
contenting itself with general instructions and 
movements. But this is not so with Grant. 
When once awaked to action, his whole being is 
alive, and he wants to be omnipresent. Thus, in the 
campaign of Vicksburg, he was constantly perform- 
ing the duties of subordinates, fearing that unless 
he personally superintended every thing his plans 
would miscarry. Nothing escaped his memory, 
or inspection. Hence, he was often on the picket 
line all alone, endeavormg to ascertain, from per- 
sonal inspection, more of the enemy's position and 
plans than he could obtain from the reports of his 
officers. On one of these occasions he came near 
falling into the hands of the enemy. It was at 
Chattanooga, while he was preparing for the bat- 
tle of Missionary Ridge. Wishing to get a nearer 
view of the enemy, he often rode out on the picket 
line, and once happened to be on the eastern bank 
of Chattanooga creek, when a party of rebel sol- 
diers were drawing water on the other side. They 
wore blue coats ; and, thinking they were his own 
men, Grant asked them to whose command they 



AN ANECDOTE. 413 

belonged. They answered, " Longstreet's corps ; " 
whereupon Grant called out : " What are you 
doing in those coats, then ? " The rebels replied : 
" Oh ! all our corps wear blue." This was a fact, 
which Grant had forgotten. The rebels then 
scrambled up on their own side of the stream, 
little thinking that they had been talking with the 
commander of the national army. 

Another striking peculiarity of Grant is his cor- 
rectness of judgment under adverse circumstances 
and conflicting views. Sherman once told him that 
he thought he would fail in " grand strategy," 
but he found that his strong common sense sup- 
plied the place of the study of this science. This is 
but another way of saying that Grant's judgment 
is so correct that he seldom fails to do the right 
thing under whatever new circumstances he may 
be placed. His confidence in this judgment is 
wonderful — not the confidence of self-conceit, but 
of conscious power. He never hesitated to assume 
any responsibility. In his final campaign against 
Vicksburg he acted against the advice of every 
officer whom he consulted, and against the known 
views of the General-in-chief and the President. 
Not only was it conceived by himself alone, but in 
carrying it to its successful termination he never 
called a council of war. 

The victories he has won are evidence to the 
whole world of his great ability as a military 



414 LIFE OF GRANT. 

leader ; but he has also shown a remarkable power 
in one respect that has hardly been commented 
upon — the power of handling large armies. Na- 
poleon declared that not more that one or two gen- 
erals beside himself in all Europe, could manoeuvre 
a hundred thousand men on the field of battle. 
Grant did more than this ; and the manner in 
which he handled the Army of the Potomac on 
the route from the Rapidan to Hichmond, was 
more astonishing than the winning of a great bat- 
tle. The way he swung it from Spottsylvania 
to the North Anna, without having his flank 
crushed in, and from thence to the Pamunkey, 
and, last of all, from the Chickahominy, for fifty 
miles, across the James, to Petersburg, right 
from under the nose of the enemy, and yet never 
be attacked, shows a capacity in wielding enormous 
forces possessed by few men in the world. 

In this change of base to James Piver, in. the 
presence of the enemy, he exhibited the skill of 
a great commander as much as in any battle he 
ever fought. 

Napoleon says a change of base is " the ablest 
manoeuvre taught by military art." This proof of 
Grant''s great ability is one that cannot be appre- 
ciated by those who never made military move- 
ments a study. Hence President Lincoln, in 
summing up Grant's character, entirely overlooked 
the power of combination — the mental breadth. 



A WRONG ESTIMATE. 415 

comprehensiveness and administrative power 
Avhicli he possessed, and put foremost that which 
was really a subordinate quality. He says : " the 
great thing about Grant, I take it, is his perfect 
coolness and persistency of purpose. I judge he 
is not easily excited — which is a great element in 
an officer, and he has the grit of a biill-dog ! Once 
let him get his teeth in^ and nothing can shake him 
off." Now it is unquestionably true of Grant 
that he possesses the characteristics here mention- 
ed. But these alone can never make a great gen- 
eral. Obstinacy without the ability to plan and 
control, fails as often as it succeeds. So coolness 
and sclt-possession will not avail unless connected 
with mental activity and the power to take in, 
comprehend, and mould the tossing, conflicting 
elements around him. Thought often wins bat- 
tles more than the sword. 

In this connection it is pleasant to give the 
views of an intimate, beloved friend, now no 
more — McPherson. A noble man himself — uni- 
versally beloved and esteemed for his private, as for 
his public qualities, those views possess rare value : 

" Lieutenant-General U. S. Grant I regard as 
one of the most remarkable men of our country. 
Without aspiring to be a genius, or possessing 
those characteristics which impress one forcibly at 
first sight, his sterling good sense, calm judgment, 
and persistency of purpose, more than compensate 



416 LIFE OF GRANT. 

for those dashing, brilliant qualities which are apt 
to captivate at a first glance. To know and ap- 
preciate Gen. Grant fully, one ought to be a 
member of his military family. 

" Though possessing a remarkable reticence as 
fiir as military operations are concerned, he is frank 
and affable, converses well, and has a peculiarly 
retentive memory. When not oppressed Avith the 
cares of his position, he is very fond of talking, 
telling anecdotes, &c. 

" His purity of character is unimpeachable, and 
his patriotism of the most exalted kind. He is 
generous to a fault, humane and true, and a stead- 
fast friend to those whom he deems worthy of his 
confidence, and can always be relied upon in case 
of emergency." 

What McPherson says of his patriotism and 
purity of character, knowing him as long and 
intimately as he did, should alone outweigh all 
the charges that party hate or personal passion 
may bring against him. 

We are told that " he that ruleth his spirit is 
greater than he that taketh a city." Gen. Grant 
has shown that he can do this. Takins; cities is 
not an uncommon exploit ; but this thorough con- 
trol of one's self, under the most unfavorable cir- 
cumstances, is little short of a miracle. He has 
not been betrayed into a foolish word or act, or in- 
dulged in an angry expression, or exhibited a re- 



WEARS HIS HONORS MEEKLY. 417 

vengeful spirit towards his enemies. He has 
never sought promotion, indulged in no recrimi- 
nations under slanderous charges, nor used his 
power to humble an enemy. Though so far above 
the people in position, he feels as one of them, 
and wears his honors as but few of our poor fallen 
race can wear them. It is these qualities that, 
though so undemonstrative himself, make him 
universally beloved. 

Time will increase, instead of diminish that 
affection, and, side by side with Washington, his 
great services and great patriotism will remain 
like two marble columns to commemorate his 
fame.* 

* Eight pages are liere added to make up for the omission in 
paging the engravings. 

18* 



APPENDIX. 



Headqtjaetkks Armies of the TJisnTED States, ) 
Washington, June 26«A, 1865. \ 

Hon. E. M. Stanton, Secretary of War: 

SiK : I have tlie honor to transmit herewith a full 
and complete return of the battle of Belmont, Missouri, 
fought Nov. 7, 18G1, which I would respectfully ask to 
have substituted in the place of my report of that action 
of date Nov. 19, 1861, made to Gen. S. Williams, As- 
sistant Adjutant-General to the General-in-Chief. 
Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

U. S. GKAifT, Lieutenant-General. 

Eeferred to the Adjutant-General for publication 
with the accompany report. 

E. M. Stanton, Secretary of War. 

Jiine 27, 1865. 

Headqfaetees District Southeast Missouri, ) 
Cairo, III., November 17th, 1861. \ 

General: The following order was received from 
Headquarters Western Department : 

St. Louis, Mv. 1, 1861. 
Gen. Grant, Commanding at Cairo : 

Tou are hereby directed to hold your whole com- 
mand ready to march at an hour's notice, until further 
orders ; and you will take particular care to be amply 
supplied with transportation and ammunition. You 



428 APPENDIX. 

are also directed to make demonstrations with joiir 
troops along botli sides of the river toward Charleston, 
Norfolk, and Blandville, and to keep your columns con- 
stantly moving back and against these places, without, 
however, attacking the enemy. 

Very respectfully, &c., 

Chauncey McKeever, 

Assistant Adjutant-General. 

At the same time I was notified that similar instruc- 
tions had been sent to Brig.-Gen. C. F. Smith, com- 
manding Paducah, Ky., and was directed to communi- 
cate with him freely as to my movements, that his might 
be cooperative. 

On the 2d of the same month, and before it was pos- 
sible for any considerable preparation to have been 
made for the execution of this order, the following tele- 
graphic despatch was received : 

St. Louis, November 2, 1861. 
To Brig.-Gen. Grant: 

Jeff. Thompson is at Indian Ford of the St. Francis 
River, twenty-fi.ve miles below Greenville, with about 
three thousand men. Col. Carlin has started with force 
from Pilot Knob. Send a force from Cape Girardeau 
and Bird's Point to assist Carlin in driving Thompson 
into Arkansas. By order of 

Maj.-Gen. Fremont. 
C. McKeevee, Assistant Adjutant-General. 

The forces I determined to send from Bird's Point 
were immediately designated, and Col. P. J. Oglesby, 
Eighth Illinois Yolunteers, assigned to the command, 
nuder the following detailed instructions : 

Headqtjaetees District Southeast Missouri, ) 
Cairo, Mvemler 3fZ, 1861. ] 

Col. R. J. Oglesby^ Commanding^ cfic. Bird's Point, Mo. : 

You will take command of an expedition consisting 
of your regiment, four companies of the Eleventh lUi- 



APPENDIX. 429 

nois, all of the Eighteenth and Twenty-ninth, three 
companies of cavalry from Bird's Point (to be selected 
and notified by yourself), and a section of Schwartz's 
Battery, artillery, and proceed to Commerce, Missouri. 
From Commerce you will strike for Sikeston — Mr, 
Cropper acting as guide. From there go in pursuit of 
a rebel force imderstood to be three thousand strong, 
under Jeff. Thompson, now at Indian Ford, on the St. 
Francis River. 

An expedition has already left Ironton, Mo., to attack 
this force. Should they learn that they have left that 
place, it will not be necessary for you to go there, but 
pursue the enemy in any direction he may go ; always 
being cautious not to fall in with an unlooked-for foe 
too strong for the command under you. 

The object of the expedition is to destroy this force, 
and the manner of doing it is left largely at your dis- 
cretion ; believing it better not to trammel you with 
instructions. 

Transportation will be furnished you for fourteen 
days' rations and four or five days' forage. All you 
may require outside of this must be furnished by the 
country through which you pass. In taking supplies 
you will be careful to select a proper ofiicer to press 
them, and require a receipt to be given, and the articles 
pressed to be accounted for in the same manner as if 
purchased. 

You are particularly enjoined to allow no foraging 
by your men. It is demoralizing in the extreme, and 
is apt to make open enemies where they would not 
otherwise exist. 

U. S. Gbant, Brigadier-General. 

Col. J. B. Plummer, Eleventh Missouri Volunteers, 
commanding at Cape Girardeau, was directed to send 
one regiment in the direction of Bloomfield with a view 
to attracting the attention of the enemy. 

The forces under Col. Oglesby were all got off on the 
evening of the 3d. 



430 APPENDIX. 

On the 5th, a telegram was received from headquar- 
ters, St. Louis, stating that the enemy was reinforcing 
Price's army, from Columbus, by way of White Kiver, 
and directing that the demonstration that had been or- 
dered against Columbus be immediately made. Orders 
were accordingly at once given to the troops under my 
command that remained at Cairo, Bird's Point, and 
Fort Holt. A letter was also sent to Brig.-Gen. C.- P. 
Smith, commanding at Paducah, requesting him to 
make a demonstration at the same time against Co- 
lumbus. 

To more effectually attain the object of the demon- 
stration against the enemy at Belmont and Columbus, I 
determined on the morning of the 6th, to temporarily 
change the direction of Col. Oglesby's column towards 
New'Madrid, and also to send a small force under Col. 
W. H. L. Wallace, 11th Illinois Volunteers, to Charles- 
ton, Mo., to ultimately join Col. Oglesby. In accord- 
ance with this determination, I addressed Col. Oglesby 
the following communication : 

Cairo, Nov. 6, 1861. 

Col. B. J. Oglesby^ Commanding Expedition : 

On receipt of this, turn your column toward jiSTew • 
Madrid. When you arrive at the nearest point to Co- 
lumbus from which there is a road to that place, com- 
municate with me at Belmont. 

U. S. Gkant, Brigadier-General. 

Which was sent to Col. Wallace with the following 
letter : 

Caieo, Nov. 6, 1861. 

Col. W. H. L. Wallace, Bird's Point, Mo. : 

Herewith I send you an order to Col. Oglesby to 
change the direction of his column towards ISTew Madrid, 
halting to communicate with me at Belmont from the 
nearest point on his road. 

I desire you to get up the Charleston expedition 
ordered for to-morrow, to start to-night, taldng two 



APPENDIX. 431 

days' rations with them. You will accompany them to 
Charleston, and get Col. Oglesby's instructions to him 
by a messenger, if practicable, and when he is near 
enough you may join him. For this purpose you may 
substitute the remainder of your regiment in place of an 
equal amount from Col. Marsh's. The two days' rations 
carried by your ' men in haversacks will enable you to 
join Col. Oglesby's command, and there you will find 
rations enough for several days more should they be 
necessary. You may take a limited number of tents, 
and at Charleston press wagons to carry them to the 
main column. There you will find suffi(;ient transpor- 
tation to release the pressed wagons. 

U. S. Geant, Brigadier-General. 

On the evening of the 6th I left this place on steam- 
ers, with McClernand's brigade, consisting of the 27th 
Regiment Illinois Yolunteers, Col. 'N. B. Buford ; 
30th Regiment Illinois Yolunteers, Col. Philip B. 
Foulke ; 31st Regiment Illinois Yolunteers, Col. Joliii 
A. Logan ; Dollins' Company Independent Illinois Cav- 
alry, Oapt. J. J. Dollins ; Delano's Company Adams 
County Illinois Cavalry, Lieut. J. R. Catlin. Dough- 
erty's brigade, consisting of the 22d Regiment Illinois 
Yolunteers, Lieut.-Col. H. E. Hart ; 7th Regiment Iowa 
Yolunteers, Col. J. G. Lanman ; amounting to 3,111: 
men of all arms,- to make the demonstration against 
Columbus. I proceeded down the river to a point nine 
miles below here, where we lay until next morning, on 
the Kentucky shore, which served to distract the enemy 
and lead him to suppose that he was to be attacked in 
his strongly fortified position at Columbus. 

About two o'clock on the morning of the 7th, I re- 
ceived information from Col. W. H. L. Wallace at 
Charleston (sent by a messenger on board steamer W. 
If. £.), that he had learned fi'om a reliable Union man 
that the enemy had been crossing from Columbus to 
Belmont the day before, for the purpose of following 
after and cutting off the forces under Col. Oglesby. 



432 APPENDIX. 

Such a move on his part seemed to me more than prob- 
able, and gave at once a twofold importance to my 
demonstration against the enemy, namely : the preven- 
tion of reenforcements to Gen. Price, and the cutting 
oif of the two columns that I had sent, in pursuance of 
directions, from this place and Cape Girardeau in pur- 
suit of JeflF. Thompson. This information determined 
me to attack vigorously his forces at Belmont ; knowing 
that, should we be repulsed, we could reembark without 
difficulty under the protection of the gunboats. The 
following order was given : 

On Board Steamek Belle Memphis, ) 
]Srov. 7,-.1861— 2 o'clock a. m. \ 

Special Ordee : — The troops composing the present 
expedition from this place will move promptly at six 
o'clock this moraing. The gunboats will take tl»e ad- 
vance, and be followed by the 1st brigade, under com- 
mand of Brig.-Gen. John A. McClemand, composed of 
all the troops from Cairo and Fort Holt. The 2d Bri- 
gade, comprising the remainder of the troops of the 
expedition, commanded by Col. John Dougherty, will 
follow. The entire force will debark at the lowest 
point on the Missouri shore where a landing can be 
effected in security from the rebel batteries. The point 
of debarkation will be designated by Capt. Walke, com- 
manding naval forces. 

By order of 

U. S. Gkant, Brig.-Gen. 

John A. Rawlests, A. A. G. 

Promptly at the hour designated we proceeded 
down the river to a point just out of range of the rebel 
batteries at Columbus, and debarked on the Missouri 
shore. From here the troops were marched, with 
skirmishers well in advance, by flank for about one mile 
towards Belmont, and there formed in line of battle. 
One battalion had been left as a reserve near the trans- 
ports. Two companies from each regiment were thrown 



APPENDIX. 433 

forward as skirmisliers, to ascertain the position of the 
enemy, and about nine o'clock met and engaged him. 
The balance of my force, with the exception of the re- 
serve, was promptly thrown forward, and drove the 
enemy foot by foot, and fi*om tree to tree, back to his 
encampment on the river bank, a distance of over two 
miles. Here he had strengthened his position by felling 
the timber for several hundred yards around his camp, 
making a sort of abatis. Our men charged through 
this, driving the enemy under cover of the bank, and 
many of them into their transports in quick time, leav- 
ing us in possession of every thing not exceedingly port- 
able. 

Belmont is situated on low ground, and every foot is 
commanded by the guns on the opposite shore, and, of 
course, could not be held for a single hour after the 
enemy became aware of the withdrawal of his troops. 
Having no wagons with me, I could move but little of 
the captured property, consequently gave orders for the 
destruction of every thing that could not be removed, 
and an immediate return to our transports. Tents, 
blankets, &c., were set on fire and destroyed, and our 
return march commenced, taking his artillery and a 
large number of captured horses and prisoners with us. 
Three pieces of artillery being drawn by hand, and one 
by an inefficient team, were spiked and left on the road ; 
two were brought to this place. 

We had but fairly got under way when the enemy, 
having received reinforcements, rallied under cover of 
the river bank and the woods on the point of land in 
the bend of the river above us, and made his appear- 
ance between us and our transports, evidently with a 
design of cutting off our return to them. 

Our troops were not in the least discouraged, but 
charged the enemy and again defeated him. "We then, 
with the exception of the Twenty-seventh Illinois, Col- 
onel N. B. Buford commanding, reached our transports 
and embarked without further molestation. While 
waiting for the arrival of this regiment and to get some 



434 APPENDIX. 

of our wounded from afield hospital near by, tlie enem)', 
having crossed fresh troops from Columbus, again made 
his appearance on the river bank and commenced firing 
upon our transports. The fire was returned by our men 
from the decks of the steamers, and also by the gun- 
boats, with terrible efiect, compelling him to retire in 
the direction of Belmont. In the meantime Colonel 
Biiford, although he had received orders to return with 
the main force, took the Charleston road from Belmont 
and came in on the road leading to Bird's Point, where 
we had formed the line of battle in the morning. At 
this point, to avoid the shells from the gunboats that 
were beginning to fall among his men, he took a blind 
path direct to the river, and followed a wood road up 
its bank, and thereby avoided meeting the enemy, who 
were retiring by the main road. On his appearance on 
the river bank a steamer was dropped down and took 
his command on board, without his having participated 
or lost a man in the enemy's attempt to cut us ofl'from 
our transports. 

Notwithstanding the crowded state of our trans- 
ports, the only loss we sustained from the enemy's fire 
upon them, was three men wounded, one of whom be- 
longed to one of the boats. 

Our loss in killed on the field was eighty-five, three 
hundred and one wounded, (many of them, however, 
slightly,) and ninety-nine missing. Of the wounded 
one hundred and twenty-five fell into the hands of the 
enemy, Nearly all the missing were from the Seventh 
Iowa regiment, which suifered more severely than any 
other. All the troops behaved with great gallantry, 
which was in a degree attributable to the coolness and 
presence of mind of their officers, particularly the Colo- 
nels commanding. 

General McClernand was in the midst of danger 
throughout the engagement, and displayed both cool- 
ness and judgment. His horse was three times shot 
under him. 

Colonel Dougherty, of the twenty-second Illinois 
volunteers, commanding the Second Brigade, by his 



APPENDIX. 435 

coolness and bravery, entitles liiinself to be named 
among the most competent of officers for command 
of troops in battle, * * * * 

In pm-snance of my request, General Smith, com- 
manding at Paducah, sent on the Ttli instant a force to 
Mayfield, Kentucky, and another in the direction of 
Columbus, with orders not to approach nearer, how- 
ever, than twelve or fifteen miles of that place. I also 
sent a small force on the Kentucky side toward Colum- 
• bus, under Colonel John Cook, 7th Illinois Volunteers, 
with orders not to go beyond Elliott's Mills, distant 
some twelve miles from Columbus. These forces, hav- 
ing niarched to the points designated in their orders, 
returned without having met serious resistance. 

On the evening of the Tth, information of the result 
of the engagement at Belmont was sent to Colonel 
Oglesby, commanding expedition against Jeff. Thomp- 
son, and order, to return to Bird's Point by way of 
Charleston, Missouri. Before these reached him, how- 
ever, he had learned that Jeff. Thompson had left the 
place where he was reported to be when the expedition 
started (he having gone toward New Madrid or Arkan- 
sas), and had determined to return. The same infor- 
mation was sent to the commanding officer at Cape 
Girardeau, with directions for the troops to be brought 
back that had gone out from that place. 

From all the information I have been able to obtain 
since the engagement, the enemy's loss in killed and 
wounded was much greater than ours. We captured 
one hundred and seventy-five prisoners, all his artillery 
and transportation, and destroyed his entire camp and 
garrison equipage. Independent of the injuries inflict- 
ed upon him, and the prevention of his reinforcing 
Price, or sending a force to cut off the expeditions 
against Jeff. Thompson, the confidence inspired in our 
troops by the engagement will be of incalculable bene- 
fit to us in the future. Yery respectfully, your obe- 
dient servant, U. S. Grant, Brig.-General. 

Brigadier- General Seth Williams^ Assistant Adjutant- General, 
Washington, D. C. 



436 APPENDIX. 

General Sherman's letter to Grant pre^dous to 
entering on the campaign below Vicksburg, in 
which he tries to dissuade him from undertaking 
it, and of which Ave spoke in the body of the work, 
Col. Badeau says, was never preserved, and he was 
therefore indebted for a copy of it to General Sher- 
man himself. It is probably the paper that the 
former is said to have handed back to him 
after the fall of Vicksburg. It shows what kind 
of opposition Grant had to encounter in venturing 
on that extraordinary campaign, and how fearful 
the responsibility he dared to assume. 

GENEKAL SHERMAN TO COLONEL KAWLINS. 

Headquartees Fifteenth Army Corps, ) 
Camp near Vicksburg, A2)ril 8, 1863. 3 

Col. J. A. Rawlins^ A. A. 0. to General Ch'ant : 

Sir : I would most respectfully suggest, for reasons 
which I will not name, that General 'Grant call on his 
corps commanders for their opinions, concise and posi- 
tive, on the best general plan of campaign. Unless 
this be done, there are men who will, in any result fall- 
ing below the popular standard, claim that their advice 
was unheeded, and that fatal consequences resulted 
therefrom. My own opinions are : . 

1. That the Army of the Tennessee is far in advance 
of the other grand armies. 

2. That a corps from Missouri should forthwith he 
moved from St. Louis to the vicinity of Little Kock, 
Arkansas, supplies collected while the river is full, and 
land communication with Memphis opened via Des 
Ark on the White, and Madison on the St. Francis 
rivers. 

3. That as much of Yazoo Pass, Coldwater, and 
Tallahatchie rivers as can be gained and fortified be 



• APPENDIX. 437 

held, and the main army be transported thither by land 
and water ; that the road back to Memphis be secured 
and reopened ; and as soon as the waters subside, 
Grenada be attacked, and the swamp road across to 
Helena be patrolled by cavalry. 

4. That the line of the Yallabusha be the base from 
which to operate against the points where the Missis- 
sippi Central crosses Big Black above Canton, and 
lastly where the Yicksburg and Jackson Railroad 
crosses the same river. 

The capture of Vicksburg would result. 

5. That a force be left in this vicinity, not to exceed 
ten thousand men, with only enough steamboats to 
float and transport them to any direct point. This force 
to be held always near enough to act with the gunboats, 
when the main array is known to be near V icksburg, 
Haines' Bluff, or Yazoo City. 

6. I do doubt the capacity of Willow bayou (which I 
estimate to be fifty miles long and very tortuous) for a 
military cliannel, capable of supporting an army large 
enough to operate against Jackson, Mississippi, or Black 
river bridge ; and such a channel will be very valuable 
to a force coming from the west, which we must expect. 
Yet this canal will be most useful as the way to convey 
coals and supplies to a fleet that should navigate the 
reach between Yicksburg and Red river. 

7. The chief reason for operating solely by water, was 
the season of the year and high water in . Tallaliatchie 
and Yallabusha. The spring is now here, and soon 
these springs will be no serious obstacle, save the am- 
buscades of the forest, and whatever works the enemy 
may have erected at or near Grenada. North Missis- 
sippi is too valuable to allow them to hold and make 
crops. 

I make these suggestions, with the request that Gen- 
eral Grant simply read them, and give them, as I know 
he will, a share of his thoughts. I would prefer he 
should not answer them, but merely give them as much 
or as little weight as they deserve. 



438 APPENDIX. • 

General Grant's order for the guidance of the army 
when below Yicksburg : — 

Headquaetees Depaetmknt of the Tennessee, ) 
Milliken's Bend, La., April 20, 1863. \ 

Special Order N'o. 110. 
******* 
VIII. The following orders are published for the in- 
formation and guidance of the " Army in the Field," 
in its present movement to obtain a foothold on the east 
bank of the Mississippi river, from which Yicksburg 
can be approached by practicable roads. 

1. The Thirteenth Ai-my Corps, Major General John 
A. McCleruand commanding, will constitute the right 
wing. 

2. The Fifteenth Army Corps, Major Generals. T. 
Sherman commanding, will constitute the left wing. 

3. The Seventeenth Army Corps, Major General 
James B. McPherson commanding, will constitute the 
centre. 

4. The order of march to ISTew Carthage will be from 
right to left. 

5. Eeserves will be foi-med by divisions from each 
army corps, or an entire army corps will be held as a 
reserve, as necessity may require. "Wlien the reserve 
is formed by divisions, each division Avill remain under 
the immediate command of its respective corps com- 
mander, unless specially required for a particular 
emergency. 

6. Troops will be required to bivouac till proper fa- 
cilities can be afforded for the transportation of camp 
equipage. 

7. In the present movement one tent will be allowed 
to each company for the protection of rations from 
rain ; one wall tent for each regimental headquarters, 
one wall tent for each brigade headquarters, and one 
wall tent for each division headquarters. Corps com- 
manders having the books and blanks of their respect- 



APPENDIX. 439 

ive commands to provide for, are authorized to take 
sueli tents as are absolutely necessary, but not to exceed 
the number allowed by General Orders !N'o. 166, A. G. 
O. Series of 1862. 

8. All the teams of the three army corps, under the 
immediate charge of the quartermasters bearing them 
on their returns, will constitute the train for carrying 
supplies and ordnance, and the authorized camp equi- 
page of the army. 

9. As fast as the Thirteenth Army Coi'ps advances, 
the Seventeenth Army Corps will take its place ; and 
it, in turn, will be followed in like manner by the Fif- 
teenth Array Corps. 

10. Two regiments from each army corps will be de- 
tailed by corps commanders, to guard the lines ti'om 
Eichmond to New Carthage. 

11. General hospitals will be establislied, by the med- 
ical director, between Duckport and Milliken's bend. 
All sick and disabled soldiers will be left in these hos- 
pitals. Surgeons in charge of hospitals will report 
convalescents, as fast as they become fit for duty. Each 
corps comm.ander will detail an intelligent and good 
drill officer, to remain behind to take charge of the con- 
valescents of their respective corps ; officers so detailed 
will organize the men under their charge into squads 
and companies, without regard to the regiments they 
belong to ; and in the absence of convalescent commis- 
sioned officers to command them, will appoint non- 
commissioned officers or privates. The force so organ- 
ized will constitute the guard of the line from Duckport 
to Milliken's bend. They will furnish all the guards 
and details required for general hospitals, and with the 
contrabands that may be about the camps, M'ill furnish 
all the details for loading and unloading boats. 

The movement of troops fi'om Milliken's bend to 
New Carthage will be so conducted as to allow the 
transportation of ten days' supply of rations, and one- 
half the allowance of ordnance required by previous 
orders. 



440 APPENDIX. 

». 12. Commanders are authorized and enjoined to 
collect all the beef cattle, corn, and other necessary sup- 
plies on the line of march ; but wanton destruction of 
property, taking of articles useless for military pur- 

Eoses, insulting citizens, going into and searching 
ouses without proper orders from division command- 
ers, are positively prohibited. All such irregularities 
must be summarily punished. 

13. Brigadier-General J. C. Sullivan is appointed to 
the command of all the forces detailed for the protec- 
tion of the line from here to New Carthage. His par- 
ticular attention is called to General Orders No. 69, 
from Adjutant General's office, Washington, of date 
March 20, 1863. 

By order of 
Major-General U. S. Grant. 
Jolin A. Bollins, Assistant Adjutant General. 

Grant has been more bitterly assailed by Gen- 
eral McClernand, a former friend and brother officer, 
than by any other man — his hostility growing out of 
his removal from the command of his corps before 
Yicksburg. It is but just to the former, therefore, that 
the public should know the reasons of that removal. 
These are fully shown in the following order and cor- 
respondence : — 

CONGKATULATORY ORDER OF GEN. McCLERNAND. 

Headquarters Thirteenth Army Corps, } 

Battlefield in rear of Vicksburg, May 30, 1863. ) 

General Orders, No. 72. 

Comrades : As your commander, I am proud to con- 
gratulate you upon your constancy, valor, and successes. 
History affords no more brilliant examples of soldierly 
qualities. Your victories have followed in such rapid 
succession, that their echoes have not yet reached the 
country. They will challenge its grateful and enthu- 
siastic applause. Yourselves striking out a new path, 



APPENDIX. 441 

your comrades of the Army of the Tennessee followed, 
and away was thus opened for them to redeem previous 
disappointments. Your march through Louisiana, from 
Milliken's Bend to New Carthage and Perkins's planta- 
tion, on the Mississippi river, is one of the most remark- 
able on record. Bayous and miry roads, tlireatened 
with momentary inundation, obstructed your progress. 
All these were overcome by unceasing labor and unflag- 
ging energy. The two thousand feet of bridging which 
was hastily improvised out of materials created on the 
spot, and over which you passed, must long be remem- 
bered as a marvel. Descending the Mississippi still 
lower, you were the first to cross the river at Bruin's 
Landing, and to plant our colors in the state of Missis- 
sippi below Warrenton. Resuming the advance the 
same day, you pushed on until you came up to the ene- 
my near Port Gibson, only restrained by the darkness 
of night. You hastened to attack him on the morning 
of the 1st of May, and, by vigorously pressing him at 
all points, drove him from his position, taking a large 
number of prisoners and small-arms, and five pieces of 
cannon. General Logan's division came up in time to 
gallantly share in consummating the most valuable 
victory won since the capture of JFort Donelson. 

Taking the lead on the morning of the 2d, you were 
the first to enter Port Gibson, and hasten the retreat of 
the enemy from the vicinity of that place. During the 
ensuing night, as a consequence of the victory at Port 
Gibson, the enemy spiked his guns at Grand Gulf, and 
evacuated that place, retiring upon Yicksburg and Ed- 
wards' Station. The fall of Grand Gulf was solely the 
result of the victory achieved by the land forces at Port 
Gibson. The armament and public stores captured 
there are but the just trophies of that victory. 

Hastening to bridge the south branch of Bayou Pierre, 
at Port Gibson, you crossed on the morning of the 3d, 
and pushed on to Willow Springs, Big Sandy, and the 
main crossing of Fourteen-mile creek, four miles from 
Edwards' Station, A detachment of the enemy was 

19 



442 APPENDIX. 

immediately driven away from the -crossing, and you 
advanced, passed over, and rested during the night of 
the 12th within three miles of the enemy in large force 
at that station. 

On the morning of the 12th, the objective point of 
the array's movement having been changed from Ed- 
wards' Station to Jackson, in pursuance of an order 
from the commander of the department, you moved on 
the north side of Fourteen-mile creek towards Ray- 
mond. 

This delicate and hazardous movement was executed 
by a portion of your numbers under cover of Hovey'a 
division, which made a feint of attack, in line of battle, 
upon Edwards' Station. Too late to harm you, the 
enemy attacked the rear of that division, but was 
promptly and decisively repulsed. 

Resting near Raymond that night, on the morning of 
the 14th, you entered that place — one division moving 
on to Mississippi Springs, near Jackson, in support of 
General Sherman, another to Clinton, in support of 
General McPherson — a third remaining at Raymond, 
and a fourth at Old Auburn, to bring up the army- 
trains. On the 15th, you again led the advance towards 
Edwards' Station, which once more became the objective 
point. Expelling the enemy's pickets from Bolton the 
same day, you seized and held that important position. 

On the 16th, you led the advance in three columns 
upon three roads, against Edwards' Station ; meeting 
the enemy on the way in strong force, you heavily en- 
gaged him near Champion Hills, and, after a sanguinary 
and obstinate battle, with the assistance of General 
McPherson's corps, beat and routed him, taking many 
prisoners and small-arms, and several pieces of cannon. 

Continuing to lead the advance, you rapidly pursued 
the enemy to Edwards' Station, capturing that place, a 
large quantity of public stores, and many prisoners. 
Night only stopped you. 

At day-dawn, on the 17th, you resumed the advance, 
and early coming upon the enemy strongly intrenched 



APPENDIX. 443 

in elaborate works, both before and behind Big Black 
River, immediately opened with artillery upon him, fol- 
lowed by a daring and heroic charge at the point of the 
bayonet, which put him to rout, leaving eighteen pieces 
of cannon and more than a thousand prisoners in your 
hands. 

By an early hour on the morning of the 18th, you 
had constructed a bridge across the Big Black, and had 
commenced the advance upon Yicksburg. 

On the 19th, 20th, and 21st, you contiuued to recon- 
noitre and skirmish until you had gained a near ap- 
proach to tlje enemy's works. 

On the 22d, in pursuance of the order of the com- 
mander of the department, you assaulted the enemy's 
defences in front, at 10 o'clock a. m., and within thirty 
minutes had made a lodgment, and planted your colors 
upon two of his bastions. This partial success called 
into exercise the highest heroism, and was only gained 
by a bloody and protracted struggle. Yet it was gained, 
and was the first and largest success achieved anywhere 
along the whole line of our array. 

For nearly eight hours, under a scorching sun and 
destructive fire, you firmly held your footing, and only 
withdrew when the enemy had largely massed their 
forces and concentrated their attack upon you. 

How and why the general assault failed, it would be 
useless now to explain. The Thirteenth Army Corps, 
acknowledging the good intention of all, would scorn 
indulgence in weak regrets and idle criminations. Ac- 
cording justice to all, it would only defend itself. If, 
while the enenjy was massing to crush it, assistance was 
asked for, by a diversion at other points, or by reen- 
forcement, it only asked what in one case General 
Grant had specifically and peremptorily ordered, name- 
ly, simultaneous and persistent attack all along our 
lines until the enemy's outer works should be carried ; 
and what, in the other, by massing a strong force in 
time upon a weakened point, would have probably in- 
sured success. 



444 APPENDIX. 

Comrades, you have done mucla, yet sometliing more 
remains to be done. The enemy's odious defences still 
block your access to Yicksburg. Treason still rules 
that rebellious city, and closes the Mississippi River 
against rightful use by the millions who inhabit its 
sources and the great Northwest. Shall not our flag 
float over Yicksburg ? Shall not the great Father of 
Waters be opened to lawful commerce ? Methinks the 
emphatic response of one and all of you is, " It shall be 
so ? " Then let us rise to the level of a crowning trial I 
Let our common sufferings and glories, while uniting us 
as a band of brothers, rouse us to new and surpassing 
efforts 1 Let us resolve upon success, God helping us ! 
I join with you, comrades, in your sympathy for the 
wounded and sorrow for the dead. May we not trust 
— nay, is it not so — that History will associate the 
martyrs of this sacred struggle for law and order, liberty 
and justice, with the honored martyrs of Monmouth and 
Bunker Hill ! 

John A. McClernand, 

Major-General commanding. 

GENERAL SHERMAN TO COLONEL RAWLINS. 

Headquabtees Fifteenth Aemy Coep8, ) 

Camp on Walnut Hills, June 17, 1863. \ 

Lieutenant- Colonel J. A. Rawlins, 

A. A. General Department of the Tennessee: 

Sir : On my return last evening from an inspection 
of the new works at Snyder's BluSf, General Blair, who 
commands the second division of my corps, called mj 
attention to the enclosed publication in the Memphis 
Evening Bulletin of June 13th instant, entitled " Con- 
gratulatory Order of General McClernand," with a re- 
quest that I should notice it, lest the statements of facts, 
and inference contained therein, might receive credence 
from an excited public. 

It certainly gives me no pleasure or satisfaction to 
notice such a catalogue of nonsense, such an effusion of 



APPENDIX. 445 

vainglorj'^ and hypocrisy; nor can I believe General 
McClernand ever published such an order officially to 
his corps. I know too well that the brave and intelli- 
gent soldiers and officers who compose that corps will 
not be humbugged by such stuff. 

If the order be a genuine production, and not a for- 
gery, it is manifestly addressed, not to an army, but to 
a constituency in Illinois, far distant from the scene of 
the events attempted to be described, who might inno- 
cently be induced to think General McClernand the 
sagacious leader and bold hero he so complacently paints 
himself. 

But it is barely possible the order is a genuine one, 
and was actually read to the regiments of the Thirteenth 
army corps, in which case a copy must have been sent 
to your office for the information of the commanding 
general. I beg to call his attention to the requirements 
of General Order No. 151, of 1862, which actually for- 
bids the publication of all official letters and reports, 
and requires the name of the writer to be laid before 
the President of the United States for dismissal. 

The document under question is not technically a 
letter or report, and, though styled an order, is not an 
order. It orders nothing, but is in the nature of an 
address to soldiers, manifestly designed for publication 
for ulterior political purposes. It perverts the truth, 
to the ends of flattery and self-glorification, and contains 
many untruths, among which is one of monstrous false- 
hood. 

It substantially accuses General McPherson and my- 
self with disobeying the orders of General Grant, in not 
assaulting on the 19th and 22d of May, and allowing, 
on the latter day, the enemy to mass his forces against 
the Thirteenth army corps alone. General McPherson 
is fully able to answer for himself; and for the Fifteenth 
army corps I answer, that on the 19th and 22d of May, 
it attacked furiously at three distinct points the enemy's 
works, at the very hour and minute fixed in General 
Grant's written orders ; that, on both days, we planted 



446 APPENDIX. 

onr colors on the extei'ior slope and kept them tliere till 
nightfall; that from the first hour of the investment of 
Vicksbiirg until now, mj corps has been far in advance 
of General McClernand ; that the general-in-chief, by 
personal inspection, knows this truth ; that tens of thou- 
sands of living witnesses beheld and participated in the 
attack ; that General Grant visited me during both as- 
saults, and saw for himself, and is far better qualified 
to judge whether Jiis orders were obeyed tlian General 
McClernand, who was near three miles oft"; that Gen- 
eral McClernand never saw my lines; that he then 
knew, and still knows nothing about them, and that 
from his position he had no means of knowing what 
occurred on this front. 

ISTot only were the assaults made at the time and 
place, and in the manner prescribed in General Grant's 
written orders, but about three p. m., five hours after 
the assault on the 22d began, when my storming-party 
lay against the exterior slope of the bastion in my front, 
and Blair's whole division was deployed close up to the 
parapet, ready to spring to the assault, and all my field- 
artillery were in good position for the work. General 
Grant shewed me a note from General McClernand, 
that moment handed him by an orderly, to the efiect 
that " he had carried three of the enemy's forts, and 
that the flag of the Union waved over the stronghold 
of Yicksbui'g," asking that the enemy should be pressed 
at all points, lest he should concentrate on him. Not 
dreaming that a major-geueral would at such a critical 
moment make a mere buncombe communication, I 
ordered instantly Giles A. Smith and Mower's brigades 
to renew the assault, under cover of Blair's division, and 
the artillery deployed as before described, and sent an 
aide to General Steele, about a mile to my right, to con- 
vey the same mischievous message, whereby we lost 
needlessly many of our best officers and men. 

I would never have revealed so unwelcome a truth 
had General McClernand, in his process of self-flattery, 
confined himself to facts in the reach of his own obser- 



APPENDIX. 447 

vation, and not e;one oat of Lis way to charge others 
for results which he seems not to comprehend. 

In cases of repulse and failure, congratulatory ad- 
dresses by subordinate commanders are not common, 
and are only resorted to by weak and vain men to shift 
the burden of responsibility from their own to the 
shoulders of others. 

I never make a practice of speaking or writing of 
others, but, during our assault of the 19th, several of 
my brigade commanders were under the impression 
that McClernand's corps did not even attempt an as- 
sault. In the congratulatory order I remark great silence 
on that subject. Merely to satisfy inquiring parties, I 
should like to know if McClernand's corps did or did 
not assault at two p. m. of May 19th, as ordered. I 
don't believe it did, and I think General McClernand 
responsible. 

With these remarks I leave the matter where it prop- 
erly l^clongs, in the hands of the commanding general, 
who knows his plans and orders, sees with an eye single 
to success and his country's honor, and not from the 
narrow and contracted circle of a subordinate com- 
mander, who exaggerates the importance of the events 
that fall under his immediate notice, and is filled with 
an itching desire for " fame not earned." 
With great respect. 

Your obediant servant, 

W. T. Sherman, 

Major-General commanding. 

GENERAL MCPHEKSON TO GENERAL GRANT. 

Headquabtees Seventeentit Army Coeps, 

Department of the Tejtnesseb, 
Near Vicksbueg, Miss., June 18, 1863. 

Major-General Grant, 

commanding Dejyartment of the Tennessee : 

General : My attention has just been called to an 
article published in the Missouri Democrat of the lOtli 



448 APPENDIX. 

instant, purporting to be a congratulatory order from 
Major-General John A. McClern'and to his command. 

The whole tenor of the order is so ungenerous, and 
the insinuations and criminations against the other 
coi-ps of your army are so manifestly at variance with 
the facts, that a sense of duty to my command, as well 
as the verbal protest of every one of my division and 
brigade commanders against allowing such an order to 
go forth to the public unanswered, require tliat I should 
call your attention to it. 

After a careful perusal of the order, I cannot help 
arriving at the conclusion that it was written more to 
influence public sentiment at the North, and impress 
the public mind wdth the magnificent strategy, superior 
tactics, and brilliant deeds of the major-general com- 
manding the Thirteenth army corps, than to congratu- 
late his troops upon their well-merited successes. 

There is a vaingloriousness about the order, an in- 
genious attempt to write himself down the hero, the 
master-mind, giving life and direction to military oper- 
ations in this quarter, inconsistent with the high-toned 
principle of the soldier sans peur et sans reproche. 

Though " born a warrior," as he himself stated, he 
has evidently forgotten one of the most essential quali- 
ties, viz., that elevated, refined sense of honor, which, 
while guarding his own rights with jealous care, at all 
times renders justice to others. 

It little becomes Major-General McClernand to com- 
plain of want of cooperation on the part of other corps, 
in the assault on the enemy's works on the 22d ultimo, 
when twelve hundred and eighteen men of my com- 
mand were placed hors du combat in their resolute and 
daring attempt to carry the positions assigned to them, 
and fully one-third of these, from General Quimby's 
division, with the gallant and accomplished Colonel 
Boomer at their head, fell in front of his oivn lines, 
where they were left, after being sent two miles to sup- 
port him, to sustain the whole brunt of the battle, from 
five p. M. until after dark, his own men heing recalled. 



APPENDIX. 449 

If General McClernaiid's assaulting columns were 
not immediately supported when they moved against 
the enemy's intrenchments, and few of the men suc- 
ceeded in getting in, it most assuredl}'' was his own 
faulty and not the fault of any other corps commander. 

Each corps commander had the positions assigned to 
him which he was to attempt to carry, and it remained 
with him to dispose his troops in such a way as to sup- 
port promptly and efficiently any column which suc- 
ceeded in getting in. 

The attack was ordered by the Major-general com- 
manding the department to be simultaneous at all the 
points selected ; and precisely at the hour, the columns 
moved, some of them taking a little longer than others 
to reach the enemy's works, on account of the natural 
and artificial obstacles to be overcome, but the differ- 
ence in time was not great enough to allow of any 
changing or massing of the enemy from one part of the 
line to the other. 

The assault failed, not, in my opinion, from any want 
of cooperation or bravery on the part of our troops, but 
from the strength of the works, the difficulty of getting 
close up to them under cover, and the determined cliar- 
acter of the assailed. 

Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
James B. McPherson, Major-General. 



BRAGg's EEPOET of battle of CHATTANOOGA. 

Headquarters, Akmy of the Tenxkssee, ) 
Dalton, Ga, November 30, 1863. \ 

SiK : On Monday, the 23d, the enemy advanced in 
heavy force, and drove in our picket line in front of 
Missionary Kidge, but made no further effort. On 
Tuesday morning early, they threw over the river a 
heavy force opposite the north end of the Ridge, and 
just below the mouth of the Chickamauga, at the same 
time displaying a heavy force in our immediate front. 

19* 



450 APPENDIX. 

After visiticg the right and making dispositions there 
for the new development in that direction, I returned 
towards the left, to find a heavy cannonading going on 
from the enemy's batteries on our forces occupying the 
slope of Lookout Mountain, between the crest and the 
river. A very heavy force soon advanced to the as- 
sault, and was met by one brigade only — Walthall's, 
which made a desperate resistance, but was finally com- 
pelled to yield ground — Avhy this command was not 
sustained is yet unexplained. The commander on that 
part of the field, Major-General Stevenson, had six 
brigades at his disposal. Upon his urgent appeal, an- 
other brigade was despatched in the afternoon to his 
support, though it appeared his own forces had not 
been brought into action, and I proceeded to the scene. 

Arriving just before sunset, I found we had lost all 
the advantages of the position. Orders were immedi- 
ately given for the ground to be disputed until we 
could withdraw our forces across Chattanooga creek, 
and the movement was commenced. This having been 
successfully accomplished, our whole forces were con- 
centrated on the Ridge, and extended to the right to 
meet the movement in that direction. 

On Wednesday, the 25th, I again visited the extreme 
right, now under Lieutenant-General Hardee, and 
threatened by a heavy force, whilst columns could be 
seen marching in that direction. A very heavy force 
in line of battle confronted our left and centre. 

On my return to this point, about eleven a. m., the 
enemy's forces Avere being moved in heavy masses from 
Lookout, and beyond to our front, whilst those in front 
extended to our right. They formed their lines, with 
great deliberation, just beyond the range of om' guns, 
and in plain view of our position. 

Though greatly outnumbered, such was the strength 
of our position, that no doubt was entertained of our 
ability to hold it, and every disposition was made for 
that purpose. 

During this time they had made several attempts on 



APPENDIX. 451 

our extreme right, and had been handsomely repulsed 
with \erj heavy loss, by Major-General Cleburne's 
command, under the immediate direction of Lieutenant- 
General Hardee. 

By the road, cross {sic) the ridge at Rossville, far to 
our left, a route was open to our rear. Major-General 
Breckinridge, commanding on the left, had occupied 
this with two regiments, and a battery. It being re- 
ported to me that a force of the enemy had moved in 
that direction, the general was ordered to have it recon- 
noitred, and to make every disposition necessary to 
secure his flank, which he proceeded to do. 

About three and a half p. M., the immense force in 
the front of our left and centre advanced in three lines, 
preceded by heavy skinnishers. Our batteries opened 
with fine effect, and much confusion was produced, 
before they reached musket range. 

In a short time the war of musketry became very 
heavy, and it was soon apparent that tlie enemy had 
been repulsed in my immediate front. 

Whilst riding along the crest, congratulating the 
troops, intelligence reached me that our line was broken 
on my right, and the enemy had crowned the ridge. 
Assistance was promptly despatched to that point un- 
der Brigadier-General Bate, who had so successfully 
maintained the ground in my front, and I proceeded 
to the rear of the broken line to rally our retiring troops 
and return them to the crest to drive the enemy back. 
General Bate found the disaster so great that his small 
force could not repair it. 

About this time I learned that our extreme left had 
also given way, and that my position was almost sur- 
rounded. Bate was immediately directed to form a 
second line in the rear, where by the efforts of my staff, 
a nucleus of stragglers had been foi-med upon which to 
rally. 

Lieutenant-General Hardee, leaving Major-General 
Cleburne in command on the extreme right, moved 
towards the left, when he heard the heavy firing in that 



452 APPENDIX. 

direction. He reached the right of Anderson's division 
just in time to find it had nearly all fallen back, com- 
mencing on its left where the enemy had first crowned 
the ridge. By a prompt and judicious movement, he 
threw a portion of Cheatham's division directly across 
the ridge, facing the enemy, who was now moving a 
strong force immediately on his left flank. By a 
decided stand here the enemy was entirely checked, and 
that portion of our force to the right remained intact. 

All to the left, however, except a portion of Bate's 
division was entirely routed, and in rapid flight — nearly 
all the artillery having been shamefully abandoned by 
its infantry support. 

Every effort which could be made by myself and staff, 
and by many other mounted oflncers, availed but little. 
A panic, which I had never before witnessed, seemed 
to have seized upon oflicers and men, and each seemed 
to be struggling for his personal safety, regardless of his 
duty or his character. 

In this distressing and alarming state of affairs, Gen- 
eral Bate was ordered to hold his position, covering the 
road for the retreat of Breckinridge's command ; and 
orders were immediately sent to Generals Hardee and 
Breckinridge to retire their forces upon the depot at 
Chickamauga. 

Fortunately, it was now near nightfall, and the 
country and roads in our rear were fully known to us, 
but equally unknown to the enemy. 

The routed left made its way back in great disorder, 
effectually covered, however, by Bate's small command, 
which had a sharp conflict with the enemy's advance, 
driving it back. After night, all being quiet. Bate 
retired in good order — the enemy attempting no pursuit. 

Lieutenant-General Hardee's command, under his 
judicious management, retired in good order and un- 
molested. 

As soon as all troops had crossed, the bridges over 
the Chickamauga were destroyed to impede the enemy, 
though the stream was fordable at several places. 



APPENDIX. 453 

No satisfactory excuse can possibly be given for the 
shamefiil conduct of our troops on the left, in allowing 
their line to be penetrated. The position was one 
which ought to have been held by a line of skirmishers 
against any assaulting column ; and wherever resistance 
was made, the enemy fled in disorder after suffering 
heavy loss. Those who reached the ridge, did so in a 
condition of exhaustion from the great physical exertion 
in climbing, which rendered them powerless : and the 
slightest effort would have destroyed them. 

Having secured much of our artillery, they soon 
availed themselves of our panic, and turning our guns 
upon us, enfiladed the lines both right and left, render- 
ing them entirely untenable. 

Had all parts of the line been maintained with equal 
gallantry and persistence, no enemy could ever have 
dislodged us; and but one possible reason presents 
itself to my mind, in explanation of this bad conduct 
in veteran troops, who had never before failed in any 
duty assigned them, however difficult and hazardous. 

They had, for two days, confi-onted the enemy, mar- 
shalling his immense forces in plain view, and exhibiting 
to their sight such a superiority in nmubers, as may 
have intimidated weak minds and untried soldiers. 

But our veterans had so often encountered similar 
liosts, when the strength of position was against us, and 
with perfect success, that not a doubt crossed my mind. 

As yet I am not fully informed as to the commands 
which first fled, and brought this great disaster and dis- 
grace upon our arms. Investigation will bring out the 
truth, however, and full justice shall be done to the 
good and the bad. 

After arriving at Chickamauga, and informing myself 
of the full condition of affairs, it was decided to put the 
army in motion for a point further removed from a 
pow^erful and victorious army, that we might have some 
little time to replenish and recuperate for another 
struggle. The enemy made pursuit as far as Ringgold, 
but was so handsomely checked by Major-General 
Cleburne and Brigadier-General Gist, in command of 



454 APPENDIX. 

their respective divisions, that he gave us but little 
annoyance. 

Lieutenant-General Hardee, as usual, is entitled to 
my warmest thanks and high commendation for his 
gallant and judicious conduct during the whole of the 
trying scenes through which we passed. 

Major-General Cleburne, whose command defeated 
the enemy in every assault on the 25th, and who even- 
tually charged and routed him on that day, capturing 
several stands of colors and several hundred prisoners, 
and who afterwards brought up our rear with great 
success, again charging and routing the pursuing column 
at Ringgold, on the 27th, is commended to the special 
notice of the government. 

Brigadier-Generals Gist and Bate, commanding divi- 
sions, Gumming, Walthall, and Polk, commanding 
brigades, were distinguished for coolness, gallantry, and 
successtul conduct, throughout the engagements, and in 
the rear-guard on the retreat. 

To my staif, personal and general, my thanks are 
specially due for their gallant and zealous efforts, under 
fire, to rally the broken troops and restore order ; and 
for their laborious services in conducting successfully 
the many and arduous duties of the retreat. 

Our losses are not yet ascertained ; but in killed and 
wounded, it is known to have been very small. In 
prisoners and stragglers, I fear it is much larger.^ 

The chief of artillery reports the loss of forty pieces. 
I am, sir, very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 
Beaxton Bragg, General commanding. 
General S. Cooper, 

Adjutant- General C. S. A„.Iiichmond. 

General Grant's order respecting the last great move 
of the Army which ended in the surrender of Lee. 
City Point, Va., March 29, 1865. 

General : — On the 29th instant, the armies operating 
against Richmond will be moved by our left for the 



APPENDIX. 455 

double purpose of turning tlie enemj out of his present 
position around Petersburg, and to ensure the success 
of the cavalry under General Sheridan, who will start 
at the same time, in his efforts to reach and destroy the 
South Side Railroads. 

Two corps of the Army of the Potomac will be moved 
at first in two columns taking the two roads crossing 
Hatcher's run nearest where the present line held by us 
strikes that stream, both running towards Dinwiddle 
Court House. 

The cavalry under General Sheridan joined by the 
division under General Davies, will move at the same 
time, by the Weldon road and the Jerusalem plank 
road, turning west from the latter before crossing the 
Nottoway, and west with the whole column before 
reaching Stony Creek, General Sheridan will then 
move independently, under other instructions which will 
be given him. All dismounted cavalry belonging to the 
Army of the Potomac, and the dismounted cavalry 
from the Middle Military Division not required for 
guarding property belonging to their arm of the service 
mil report to Brigadier-General Benham, to be added 
to the defences of City Point. Major-General Parke 
will be left in command of all the array left for holding 
the lines about Petersburg and City Point, subject of 
course to orders from the commander of the Army of 
the Potomac. The Ninth Army Corps will be left 
intact to hold the present line of works so long as the 
whole line was occupied by us is held. If, however, 
the troops to the left of the Ninth Corps are withdrawn, 
then the left of the corps may be thrown back so as to 
occupy the position held by the army prior to the 
capture of the Weldon road. All troops to the left of 
the Ninth Corps will be held in readiness to move at 
the shortest notice by such route as may be designated 
when the order is given. General Ord will detach three 
divisions, two white and one colored, or so much of them 
as he can and hold his present lines, and march for the 
present left of the Army of the Potomac. In the 



456 APPENDIX. 

absence of further orders or until fiirtlier order is given, 
the white divisions will follow the left column of the 
Army of the Potomac, and the colored divisions the 
right column. During the movement, Major-General 
Weitzel will be left in command of all the forces re- 
maining behind of the Army of the James. 

The "movement of troops from the Army of the 
James will commence on the night of the 27th instant. 
General Ord will leave behind the minimum number of 
cavalry necessary for picket duty in the absence of the 
main army. A cavalry expedition from General Ord's 
command will also be started from Suffolk, to leave there 
on Saturday, the 1st of April, under Colonel Sumner, 
for the purpose of cutting the railroad about Hicksford. 
This, if accomplished, will have to be a surprise, and 
therefore from three to five hundred men will be suffi- 
cient. They should, however, be supported by all the 
infantry that can be spared from Norfolk and Ports- 
mouth as far out as to where the cavalry crosses the 
Blackwater. The crossing should probably be at Unitee. 
Should Colonel Sumner succeed in reaching the Weldon 
road he will be instructed to do all the damage possible 
to the triangle of roads between Hicksford, Weldon and 
Gaston. The railroad bridge at Weldon being fitted 
up for the passage of carriages, it might be practicable 
to destroy any accumulation of supplies the enemy may 
have collected south of the Roanoke. All the troops 
will move with four days' rations in haversacks and 
eight in wagons. To avoid as much hauling as possi- 
ble, and to give the Army of the James the same num- 
ber of days" supply with the Army of the Potomac, 
General Ord will direct his commissary and quarter- 
master to have sufficient supplies delivered at the termi- 
nus of the road to fill up in passing. Sixty rounds oi 
ammunition will be taken in wagons and as much grain 
as the transportation on hand will carry after taking 
the specified amount of other supplies. The densely- 
wooded country in which the army have to operate 
making the use of much artillery impracticable, the 



APPENDIX. 457 

amount taken with the army will be reduced to six or 
eight guns to each division, at the option of the army 
commanders. 

All necessary preparations for carrying these direc- 
tions into operation may be commenced at once. Tlie 
reserves of the Ninth Corps should be massed as much 
as possible. Whilst I would not now order an uncon- 
ditional attack on the enemy's line by them, they should 
be ready and make the attack if the enemy weakens his 
line in their front, without waiting for orders. 

In case they carry the line, then the whole of the 
Ninth Corps could follow up so as to join or cooperate 
with the balance of the army. To prepare for this, the 
Ninth Corps will have rations issued to them same 
as the balance of the army. General Weitzel will keep 
vigilant watch upon his front, and if found at all practi- 
cable to break through at any point, he will do so. A 
success north of the James should be fo ^owed up with 

Seat promptness. An attack will not be feasible un- 
;s it is found that the enemy has detached largely. 
In that case it may be regarded as evident that the 
enemy are relying on their local reserves principally 
for the defence of Richmond. Preparations may be 
made for abandoning all the line north of the James, 
except inclosed works — only to be abandoned, however, 
after a break is made in the lines of the enemy. 

By these instructions a large part of the armies ope- 
rating against Richmond is left behind. The enemy 
knowing this may, as an only chance, strip their lines 
to the merest skeleton, in the hope of advantage not 
being taken of it, whilst they hurl every thing against 
the moving column and return. It cannot be impressed 
too strongly u^pon commanders of trooj^s left in the 
trenches, not to allow this to occur without taking ad- 
vantage of it. The very fact of the enemy coming out 
to attack, if he does so, might be regarded as almost 
conclusive evidence of such a weakenmg of his lines, I 
Avould have it particularly enjoined on corps command- 
ers, that in case of an attack from the enemy, those not 



458 APPENDIX. 

attacked are not to wait for orders from the connnand- 
ing officer of the armj to which they belong, but that 
they will move promptly and notify the commander of 
their action. I would also enjoin the same action on the 
part of division commandej'S when other parts of their 
corps are not engaged. In like manner I would urge 
the importance of following up a repulse of the enemy. 

U. S. Grant, Lieutenant-General. 
Major- Generals Meade, Ord, and Sheridan. 



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BOirS IN 

OK, 

Heeoes of the Rank and File, 



OK, ^ ^ 



COMPRISINQ 



Incidents and Reminiscences from the Camp, Battle-Field and Hospital, 
with Narratives of the Sacrifice, Sufferings and Triumphs 



Mrs. A. H. HOQE, 

ASSOCIATE MAJIAGEE OF THE BTEWESTEBN BRANCH OF THE U. S. SAOTTAEY COMMISSION, CHICAGO 

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Able writers have described the campaigns which resulted in the orerthrow of the Rebellion 
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WEARING OF THE CRAY, 

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BY 

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Speech of Hon. A. H. Stephens, delivered in the Kali of the Hoiue of BepresentatiTea 

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Declaration of Causes which induced the Secession of South Carolina. 
Ordinance of Secession of South Carolina. 

" " liOuisiana. 

" " Alabama. 

** " Aj-kansas. 

** " North Carolina. 

" •* "Virginia. 

" '* Texas. 

•* ** UississippL 

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Speech of Jefferson Davis on Leaving the United States Senate. 
African Slavery, the Comer. Stone of the Southern Confederacy. A Speech 

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Hobert Toombs' Address to the People of Oeor^ia. Telegraphed from Wanhiac* 

ton, December 23, 1S60. 
The Constitution of the Confederate States of America, 
members of the Confederate Cabinet and Congress. 
Inaugural Address of Jefferson Davis. 
Speech of President Davis, at Richmond, June 1, 1861. 
Speech of Ex-Governor Henry A. Wise. 
Proclamation by Jefferson Davis, Granting Letters of Marque. 
Speech of Hon. A. H. Stephens, at Atlanta, Ga., April SO, 1861. 
Speech of J. M. Hason, at Richmond, Ya., June 3, 1861. 
Sam Houston's Speech, at Independence, Teias, May 10. 
Speech of Howell Cobb, at Atlanta, Ga., May 22, 1861. 
General R. "E. Lee's Address to his Troops. 
Speech of Hon. A. H. Stephens, at Richmond, Va., April 22, 1861. 
The Liast Manifesto of the Confederate Congress. 
The Last Proclamation of President Davis. 
Generals of the Confederate Ajnny. 

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